Yreka High School begins school with hybrid learning model

YREKA, Cali. – Most Southern Oregon schools don’t start classes until after Labor Day. However, Yreka High School in Northern California is finishing up it’s second week of school. Yreka High School is doing a hybrid learning model. The learning model allows students to meet in-person and online.

“It’s all new, everything we’re doing hasn’t been done before,” said Mark Greenfield, Superintendent and Principal for Yreka High School.

Since May, his team has been working together planning what the current school year will look like.

“The most important thing is that we are providing a good education. That has to be provided on campus and off. And we didn’t know what that was gonna look like,” said Rhonda Daws, Assistant Principal of Yreka High School.

They decided for their nearly 700 high school student population a mixture of both online and in-person learning. Each student was assigned a Red Day and a Gold Day. The various days allow students to get the best of both worlds, with the intent of limiting their potential exposure to COVID-19.

“Obviously, nobody gets it all right we’re having to fine tune things. Overall I think my staff, teachers, and admin we did a pretty good job dotting all the I’s and crossing all the T’s,” said Greenfield.

One of the reasons staff members pushed for in-person classes was the concern for students’ mental wellness.

“Just talking to kids they want to be on campus and they are going to comply and do whatever it takes for them to be here,” said Ken Dysert, Athletic Director of Yreka High School.

Staff tell me they had their doubts, but students are actually making their job a little easier.

“I thought it might be a nightmare trying to get them to social distance and their masks and stuff, but I think across the board they gotta wear their masks to play the game to be able to be here,” said Dysert.

Yreka High School says in the case there’s an outbreak, the school says it does have a plan to identify and quarantine impacted students.