Class is in session

Back to school season has come and gone, as cute pictures of first day outfits have regularly flooded social media platforms for the past two weeks.

School began over two weeks ago in the Mullan School District, and was one of the earliest starts in the region.

Superintendent Les Wells reported that Shoshone County’s smallest district clocked in with 94 students for the 2021-22 school year and is looking forward to getting the year going.

Despite being apart of the initial school shutdown in March 2020, during the last school year of 2020-21 Mullan was able to navigate their schooling very much as it was prior to the shutdown due to lower numbers and plenty of space.

This year they are continuing to take steps back toward pre-pandemic normalcy and maybe the closest to achieving it throughout Shoshone County.

“The students seem to be happy to be back full time and in person,” Wells said.

The Wallace School District has been in session for just over a week now, and despite dealing with some early bumps due to COVID-19, they are moving right along.

All signs are pointing to a terrific year in the WSD if the first few days are any indicator.

“The first few days have been amazing,” WSD Superintendent Todd Howard said. “We have had some exciting sporting events, a well-attended open house at the elementary school, and an enthusiastic pep rally at the high school. New student enrollments are up a little and that always causes some logistical challenges. Class schedules, bus routes, and just learning the school protocol are all areas of struggle for our new students and families. Our support staff are working feverishly (possibly a pun?) to get all our students into a regular routine as quickly as possible.”

According to Howard, enrollment numbers have crept up in grades 1, 6, and 7, but the real eye-opener was the 46 students who are attending WSD’s Kindergarten Program.

With shuffling and things of that nature Howard anticipates anywhere from a five to eight percent increase in overall enrollment for his district.

Howard, a man of many hats in his district, was also able to get into both of his school buildings during the first two days of school and noticed a palpable feeling of excitement among the students and staff.

“I had the opportunity to visit both schools last week and drove one of the pm bus routes yesterday (Tuesday),” Howard said. “It is obvious that all the staff and students are overwhelmingly positive about being back in school. There were lots of smiles at both schools and the buzz about the schools was very upbeat.”

Shoshone County’s largest district, the Kellogg School District, was the last school to have their first day.

Always kicking off the Tuesday following Labor Day, they will also finish a week later than their compatriots to the east.

New KSD Superintendent Lance Pearson is settling into his new role and the district is reporting significant growth early on.

According to Pearson there are roughly 100 new students across the district (K-12), which includes Canyon Elementary School, Pinehurst Elementary School, Kellogg Middle School, and Kellogg High School.

But much like WSD, Pearson is reporting that there is a significant number of Kindergarten students, with more than 100 registered for the 2021-22 school year – to put it into perspective, KHS’s Class of 2021 was only 57 students.

Larger numbers are nothing that the district is ready to handle however, as enrollment has steadily dwindled down over the years, there is plenty of room for the new faces.

“First days have gone very well,” Pearson said. “We are never sure who is more excited to be back in school, the kids or the teachers. The kids all seem to be happy to be back in class and we are trying to reclaim the normalcy we are all looking for.”