Some School Activities Remain Functioning During Level 3
What happens to extracurriculars now that we’re completely virtual?
FCCLA has been one of the more active clubs at Liberty. In October, made dog treats among other projects. Similar to other clubs, FCCLA is not meeting in person due to LHS going virtual. They recently had their holiday party virtually.
December 18, 2020
Now that we’ve gone virtual, how we go about school has completely changed. Every day we sit down in front of our Chromebooks and log into class- which works out just fine (disregarding the few technical mishaps). But the question to be answered is, “What happens to extracurriculars now that we’re out of the building?”
According to activities director Mr. Eldrege, “Extracurriculars are still happening with masks and social distancing measures in place. For now, we are going to proceed with extracurricular activities. We are hopeful to be able to continue throughout our time at Level 3.”
Regarding sports, Eldredge says, “We are still moving forward with our winter sports. We are hopeful to be able to proceed through our winter season.”
He does think going virtual will impact extracurriculars as a whole.
“There will be some changes,” Eldredge said. “We will continue to socially distance and wear masks when it is feasible. We will have limited crowds at games. My hope is that with safety measures in place, we will be able to make it through the season without a shutdown.”
Key Club sponsor Mr. Barker thinks each club is going to have to address how to move forward now that we’re virtual.
“I am the sponsor for Key Club, and we can do some of our service activities virtually,” Barker said. For example, “The basketball team would need a different approach just due to the nature of the activity. So we all have to answer that question differently.”
Luckily, both Eldredge and Barker both agree that we will be able to continue some activities.
“Many activities around the school are still going on,” Barker said. “It might not seem like it because spectators are generally not allowed to attend events for safety reasons, though.”
Barker keeps a positive outlook on the situation.
“I think there will be some changes, good and bad,” he said. “Imagine getting to pay for a virtual ticket to a play that you could watch whenever you wanted to. Wouldn’t that be cool! But I also know going to cheer friends on in person is exciting, and that’s gone–for now.
Barker keeps faith in Liberty to try its best and honor safety, while still trying to be fair to students. “I know that each club and activity is different, so naturally, there will be differences in what is allowed. This is another case where I see an opportunity, but acknowledge that we do lose something from a community aspect. I think being creative and finding ways to see the world through new eyes can make our lives more exciting, and extracurriculars are no exception to that.”
