A pandemic starting, the education system stirred up to its feet, communication between students and teachers. What do these all three have in common? Change. Mental health has to be one of the things that everyone deals with. Good or bad, it needs to be a more important topic. The “change” in this situation is the pandemic. The pandemic has changed the way people look at life and how mental health has played a role in people’s lives. It is important to keep in mind that everyone is different. Not one person thinks the same and same with their brains. People react differently to events that cause a great change.

Learning to cope with something like a pandemic can be difficult. When people look at how big the pandemic played a role in their lives, it makes people think if it will ever get better. The vaccine rolling out is the “thing” that will make this better, or at least just a bit.

“To be honest, I didn’t cope with all the changes going around. I just think the way the school works should change, but that’s the tricky part. What should change? You see all these things happening with people and it makes you think, should you change? Does that benefit all people and not just a few? I think those questions should be asked more and not just something that crosses your mind. If I had to guess, an idea would be looking into schools that were already completely virtual, then see how you can incorporate that into your own schooling system, right? I mean that’s the whole point, to improve,” said freshman Emma Simpson.

On the other hand, the effect of the pandemic changed the way education was to be taught and assigned. Virtual schooling was the outcome. Sure, it served to be great at first, but there were many little things that needed to be fixed, one of them being the number of assignments being assigned within a time limit. It may not seem like it, but not only do students get overwhelmed with assignments needing to be turned in, they are also in the place that they need to “balance” life on top of all the rest.

“I’m not sure what the teachers can do besides try to take some stress off our shoulders by assigning less work or giving us longer due dates. I just don’t feel that there is enough time in a day to complete work while you are “balancing” life on one hand and doing schoolwork on the next,” said freshman Valerie Guzman.

There is also a good outcome to being in a new learning model. Not a big one at first, but anything that is deemed good by a student actually being in the virtual learning environment is still something that needs to be talked about.

“I personally like this new change in learning. I really enjoy it because I feel like I learn a lot better at home away from distractions. Going to school makes me feel anxious and I do not enjoy it. It makes me feel like I do not belong there. I don’t like the idea of seeing a lot of people, that is why I prefer staying at home. I don’t think anything should change in the meantime since this pandemic is still a huge problem and going to in-person school will cause more problems,” said freshman Kristal Benitez.

The next big thing to talk about is how students personally dealt with this pandemic. Normal life will almost not be the same. The world and how people view it has changed. It is everyone’s responsibility to cope with those changes and continue on forward as people have always been doing.

“Due to this pandemic, I have dealt with some problems. For example, being away from the people I love and cherish, my friends, and doing stuff I enjoy, basically, doing things that make me happy. Since the pandemic started. I have had some downs with my mental health. I have had thoughts I shouldn’t be having, but at the same time, I have gotten a break from things that make me upset like seeing people I do not like. It has not been so bad since I still talk with my friends and do some of my favorite hobbies at home,” said Benitez.

What is also important is how upperclassmen feel. Since they have been attending Liberty for about two years or greater, they should have an overall idea of how everything has changed and have a better understanding of how the school works so that when they were placed in the virtual model, they would have more “experience.”

“It didn’t really affect me since I stayed home. I was honestly pretty happy school ended. It would’ve been nice to finish my classes though because I don’t really know what’s going on in my new classes anymore,” said sophomore Leslie Henriquez.

There is always a hope that school life will return back to how it used to be, and hopefully, the future can hold something bright. However, as of right now, school is not always all dark and gloomy. Students should look into the achievements the LHS community has made as a whole to see how the school got to this point.

“School may someday look more like it did before the pandemic began, but it will never be exactly the same.  We have learned a lot of things from this pandemic that can help us be better teachers, counselors, and educators.  Our knowledge has grown in technology areas, and access to technology has grown as well.  Ideas about what is important in regards to grading and engagement have also changed a little.  We will try to take advantage of what we have learned and hopefully make education even better with this newfound knowledge,” said Mr. McCaslin.

Enlightening student’s thinking about mental health and the effects the pandemic has on our school is key. It is important to contact a professional when you, or students, are dealing with a serious mental illness, or if you need help.