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Mt. Michael uses e-learning for students across the world

Posted at 10:17 PM, Apr 15, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-16 01:22:58-04

OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Many students, teachers and parents are still adjusting to online learning.

Mt. Michael Benedictine is a private school in Elkhorn with about 240 boys who attend the school.

Teachers now use Zoom to hold class online.

"Our classes go just as normal, like our day starts at 7:55 and it ends at 3:24," Head of School David Peters said.

Peters tells 3 News Now structure is key.

"I personally felt very strongly about the security that comes with a schedule," he said.

2/3 of the boys at Mt. Michael were living on campus before the coronavirus pandemic.

Now, hallways, dorms and classrooms are empty.

Freshman Taggart Crouse says it's not the semester he expected.

"A lot of confusion, like how is this going to play out? I didn't take it too seriously at first, I thought it was just going to be like a two or three week deal. I didn't realize it was going to be for the rest of the year," he said.

Impacts of COVID-19 have been even more challenging for Taggart's classmates from other countries.

10 percent of the schools population are international students.

"I can't imagine what I would feel like if my son was across the world during a world-wide pandemic so I've really kept that close to heart," Parent Lesley Brandt said.

Brandt, who's Taggart's mother, says she heard the school's call to action so two students from China are now living with their family.

Brandt tells 3 News Now she appreciates that Mt. Michael's has kept academics at the forefront.

"'I hope we go back to a classroom setting," she said. "I hope that maybe there's some integration of technology that we're looking at, different ways of how students can integrate technology into turning in assignments or utilizing ... you know, teams or other platforms."

Peters says the school has ensured every student has the tools need to continue their learning at home.

They've issued books and laptops to students who went back to their home states and countries.

Final exams have been canceled, but Peters says graduation is still uncertain.

"I don't know what it's going to look like at this time but they don't want a virtual event, nobody does," he said.

Peters says they're looking at mid-June or mid-July for a possible graduation, but it will depend on the state's directed health measures at that time.

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