Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, schools across the world are having to make adjustments, whether those are taking students’ temperatures, cleaning more thoroughly or using remote learning.

Like many other schools, at Hays High, students are required to wear masks throughout the day aside from lunch and during specified mask breaks when students are able to socially distance themselves from one another. At all other times, students and staff alike are required to keep their masks on properly. In addition, during lunch, another procedure change is that students are only allowed to sit five to a table in the cafeteria.

Senior TayShaun Birch said he sees the faculty and staff members enforcing these rules “all the time, especially [assistant principal] Mr. [Fred] Winter.”

While staff members fill the roles of “enforcers,” students are encouraged to not only uphold the guidelines themselves, but also to urge others to do so. However, not all students are comfortable with enforcing these rules.

“I think it depends on the situation,” social science teacher Luke Lundmark said. “I think some students would if they are comfortable with the people they need to tell, but I’m not sure, in every situation, that they would.”

Regardless of who is enforcing the guidelines, the important part is that it is happening. Almost all of the students and staff are obeying the rules without argument, even if they do not personally believe that the rules are necessary. But, there are still a few who choose to rebel.

“Staff members are to send students to talk with administration if they won’t listen or are argumentative about wearing their mask correctly,” business teacher Lindsay Hart said.

Thankfully, very few students have put up an argument; a majority of students would prefer learning from within a classroom rather than on a screen.

“Everybody wants to be in school [and] everybody wants to be involved in activities, so this is just something we have to do to be able to do that,” Winter said. “Everybody has really put their best foot forward to make the best of an uncomfortable situation.”