Additional safety precautions were in place as Triad students returned to the buildings for their first day of in-person classes on Aug. 20. Students, like those pictured above, were strategically seated to social distance from other households and wore masks on bus rides. Below, Triad staff members took the temperatures of masked high schoolers on their way into the building. Triad was the only district that started the academic year with students in the buildings five days a week. (Photos submitted)
Struggles of area schools voted year’s top COVID-related story
Any way you slice it, 2020 will be remembered as the year of the virus.
There is no aspect of life that the pandemic didn’t touch. Whether in business or pleasure, COVID put its stamp on every living soul in Union County in 2020.
As such, the Journal-Tribune choose to give virus-related stories their own Top 10 yearend ranking. The newsroom staff voted on the areas of Union County life most impacted by the virus in the past year and the results are listed below.
1. Schools
After Ohio became the first state to mandate school closures in March, local districts began navigating how to meet student’s needs without being in physical contact with them.
Early on, Marysville, Fairbanks, Jonathan Alder, Triad and North Union faced similar difficulties as they adjusted to fully remote learning.
Districts relied on laptops, or paper packets for families without internet access, to deliver content to students while educators worked to keep them engaged from home.
Aside from providing educational content, school officials also worked to establish food supply chains and ensure those who relied on school meals still had access to “grab and go” food while in-person learning was not an option.
Districts also scrambled to find substitute teachers, as they prepared for shortages due to already-low availability combined with anticipated virus cases and quarantines.
On top of the logistical challenges, state funding for schools throughout Ohio was slashed in May and the five local districts lost a combined $2.2 million.
After weathering the initial shutdown, though, districts of different sizes and locations began to face unique obstacles and found varying solutions.
Like others, Marysville schools were locked in a holding pattern from March through April after state orders canceled all in-person learning and extracurriculars.
The district was also prepared to punt on graduation, making plans to hold a virtual ceremony for the 2020 graduates, before changing course in early May and deciding to allow a drive-up event at the football stadium. Graduates were allowed to exit their vehicles, walk across the field and receive their diploma and pose for a picture, but family members had to remain in their vehicles.
Marysville officials spent the summer developing various possible methods of instructions for the fall return to class, ranging from full-remote learning to a complete return to class for all students.
In early August the district announced that students would return under a hybrid model under which students would attend class either Monday and Tuesday or Thursday and Friday with Wednesday being used to deep clean the buildings. The reduced number of students in the buildings allowed them to be spaced so as to allow six-feet of distancing between desks, reducing the number of students impacted by quarantine mandates in the event of an infected individual taking part in a class.
The district also built in a full remote learning stretch from Thanksgiving through New Year, so that potential virus spikes from holiday gatherings could be minimized.
As it turned out, the district’s first positive cases involved staff members at Bunsold Middle School shortly before the school year began.
In September when the state of Ohio began releasing results of virus cases in schools, Marysville found itself with the most number of cases in the state on the first report. That high result for Marysville eventually was reported to have been caused because many districts in the state did not report data because they had questions about the procedure.
As other districts in the area began to discuss a return to full in-class learning, Marysville parents urged the board of education to do the same, submitting dozens of pieces of correspondence to the district office. The board and administration discussed the issue but met opposition from the local teacher’s union which felt a full return would create safety issues for staff.
District officials eventually decided that social distancing could not be maintained with a full return and could result in the district having an outbreak and being forced to regress to full remote learning. The board decided to stay in its hybrid model but did eliminate the full remote stretch through the holidays.
In November the district saw perhaps its most serious virus-related impact when bus routes were slashed when 40 percent of the transportation staff was unable to work. Only about 100 students were able to use school transportation for a couple weeks in November.
As in-person learning was closing in March, Fairbanks Superintendent Adham Schirg knew maintaining connection would be crucial. He launched the district’s “Project Encouragement,” saying it was “a way that we can connect and we can take care of each other.”
In the days after schools were closed, Schirg sent a video to district seniors asking them to submit short videos “to our school community specifically, our students, to give them notes of encouragement from each other.”
Schirg told the students, “your worlds have been very, very disrupted, to say the least.”
“We’ve done a great job to really rally as a community and really pull forward,” Schirg said. “But what I think I’m missing and one of the things our community is missing, is encouragement from our students.”
He said he and the community needed a “pep talk from kids.”
Then-senior Kai Vandyke posted the first video.
“Remember to breathe,” Vandyke said. “Find things that can bring peace to your soul – whether that’s reading a book, going out for a walk or run, even cooking a meal for yourself, just doing those little things that can ground you and remind you that it will be alright.”
She told students that everything can “feel overwhelming.”
“We just have to take another breath and we have to believe that it will be okay,” Vandyke said. “It’s going to take some time. We’ll get through this. Be kind to yourself and others and stay safe.”
She added, “We can’t control everything, but we can control our outlook and our perspective.”
Like many other districts, Fairbanks elected to hold a “drive-thru” graduation at the high school football stadium. Graduates were able to get out of their vehicle, hear their name read, and receive their diploma. A professional photographer took a photograph at the end of the stage. Family members were able to watch the student graduate from their vehicle.
The district posted a virtual graduation video featuring school official comments, student speeches, individual recognition, tassel turning and other traditional commencement ceremony components.
At the time, district officials said they would work with health experts so an in-person graduation celebration could be held at some point.
“We are committed to bringing the Class of 2020 together at a future date to celebrate their contributions, both individually and collectively, to Fairbanks Local Schools,” Schirg said when it was announced the graduation would be held virtually.
Fairbanks began the school year in what officials called, “Learning Level Two.” In the Learning Level Two, half of the students were in the building Monday and Tuesday and learning remotely the other days while the other half of students were in the building Thursday and Friday and learning remotely the other days.
The district attempted several times over the first two and a half months of school to transition to Learning Level One, where students would attend in-person classes five days a week. In late October, the district announced it would transition to five days a week, in-person, all day classes. The district had one week under that plan.
In mid-November, an outbreak of COVID-19 cases forced the high school to move to the hybrid model.
At a special meeting the next week, the Fairbanks Board of Education voted unanimously to move all students back into “Learning Level Two” from Nov. 30 through at least Jan. 18.
He said this provides the best option to allow some level of in-person learning and maintain “consistency through the holiday season for our families.”
The Jonathan Alder Local School Board also delayed making graduation decisions in hope the virus would subside and an in-person graduation could be held, even if it needed to be moved off the scheduled May 24 date.
Superintendent Gary Chapman said a commencement ceremony is “the pinnacle of public education.”
“The overarching goal and our objective is to ensure that we have a traditional commencement ceremony,” Chapman said in April.
By early May, however, rising case numbers, along with state and local guidelines, made it clear a traditional graduation ceremony wouldn’t be possible. Officials decided to host a virtual graduation ceremony and drive-thru diploma pick-up to honor the Class of 2020. A video of the graduations as well as recorded messages and senior awards was posted for families and friends who were not allowed to witness the students walk across the stage in person.
Over the summer, the district announced it would begin the school year in a hybrid plan so students with last names A-K would go to class in person on Mondays and Tuesdays and students with last names L-Z would go to class on Thursdays and Fridays. Students would have online learning on days they were not in the school buildings.
In September, the district announced a plan to have students return to the building all day, five days a week beginning in October. While that was the plan, some buildings were able to make that happen and several of the buildings were not. Students in those buildings never got to five day a week in-person learning.
On Nov. 12, Madison County Health Commissioner Chris Cook ordered all Madison County schools to move to a hybrid learning model starting that week. On Nov. 23, the health department mandated that starting Nov. 30, all county schools must go fully remote. Eventually, the Madison County Board of Health voted to rescind the order.
Citing both consistency and safety, the Jonathan Alder Board of Education voted to remain in a fully remote learning path through the end of the year, but to allow sports and other extracurricular activities.
In December, district officials said students would return to school following the Christmas break and remain in the hybrid model.
Chapman said there is not a plan for what the rest of the year will look like. He said officials are busy working through logistics of planning for the planned Jan. 4 return to the buildings, but said they are exploring a variety of options that would have students in class every day, even if only for part of the day.
He said the learning model the district uses through the end of the year will depend on conditions.
Despite the pandemic forced closures during the spring, Triad officials made their intentions clear early to maintain as much in-person activity as possible.
While many districts delayed or canceled physical graduation ceremonies, Triad hosted an outdoor commencement in which parents parked their vehicles around a makeshift stage to watch their students walk across and receive their diplomas in a semi-traditional event.
After navigating a cut in state funding, Triad officials spent the summer developing a plan to bring all students who desired to return in-person back to its buildings.
Triad leveraged its smaller size and was the only local district to start the 2020-21 academic year fully in-person, five days a week with mask wearing and social distancing requirements in place.
While some families did elect to learn remotely, Superintendent Vickie Hoffman said only about 10% of students were attending classes virtually at the start of the year.
Like districts throughout the state, though, Triad saw a bulge in virus cases and quarantines among staff and students in November that ultimately pushed the district temporarily to a hybrid schedule.
Throughout the year, Triad continued to leverage technology to keep students connected with educators and resources, regardless of the limitations caused by COVID-19. The district received a $45,000 grant in December to purchase internet-enabled Google Chromebooks for its students.
North Union was another district in which students returned to school on a hybrid schedule, but only for a limited period of time.
Alternating groups of students were in school buildings two days a week, either Monday and Tuesday or Thursday and Friday, while all students learned from home on Wednesdays.
Students who preferred to learn remotely were given the option to enroll in the North Union Digital Academy and attend classes online.
NU planned for a return to in-person learning five days a week in early October, but spent the first half of the academic year bouncing between learning models.
Students spent a total of 29 days between October and November in classrooms.
After Thanksgiving, the district went to completely remote learning for six days.
Then, they transitioned back to a hybrid level for 15 days leading up to winter break.
Pictured above, the Union County Health Department’s drive-thru flu shot clinic on Oct. 16 allowed staff to prepare for the mass distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine. This year’s event, held at the Union County Fairgrounds, had eight vaccination bays stationed with UCHD nurses, Medical Reserve Corps volunteers and university nursing students. COVID-19 vaccinations began being distributed to first responders in a similar manner at the fairgrounds in December. (Journal-Tribune photo by Kayleen Petrovia)
2. Small businesses
While many were mandated to close their doors, local and state governments worked to help others businesses also struggling to keep theirs open.
Service industry employees were among the first to feel the effects of government shutdowns, as restaurants were given just hours to close dine-in services in early March.
Even as bars and restaurants were permitted to reopen, many struggled with limited capacities and curfews.
Ultimately, a number of restaurant owners began to shift operations toward carry-out and delivery options to keep their businesses afloat.
Daycares were among other businesses left to navigate the uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
Child care centers were given new capacity limitations, causing providers to figure out how to keep their doors open while working parents worried they may have to come home to watch their children.
Others weren’t given the choice to continue working, as closures of gyms, hair salons and other sectors of small businesses caused a number of employees to be laid off or furloughed.
“It was frustrating,” Union County Economic Development Director Eric Phillips said. “You would see people shopping at Wal-Mart and these other stores, but they couldn’t shop at the local stores. How is that any safer? It’s really not and I think we all knew that.”
As the pandemic started, nearly 80 Union County businesses and organizations signed the Union County Safe Pledge, an initiative to keep employees, residents and visitors healthy and safe. The program provided encouragement and incentives for businesses to take protective measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 by following safety precautions issued by the CDC and Ohio Department of Health.
In June, Officials announced the Union County 3R Small Business Relief Grant Program and distributed more than $200,000 in emergency financial assistance to nearly 50 local businesses. The 3R Small Business Grant Program (3R) was developed to provide financial aid to small businesses that sustained economic loss because of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated closures. The program was named 3R because it was intended to help, “reconnect with colleagues and partners, to rebuild our businesses and our community and recover normalcy and our strong economic momentum.”
Most of the grants were for $5,000.
Phillips said organizers used the entirety of the available funds. He said officials are considering a second round of the 3R grants.
Funds for the program came from county CARES Act funding, as well as from the City of Marysville, which converted its façade improvement grant program into the small business grant program, and the Marysville Union County Port Authority.
Phillips said the recipients represent “business sectors that have been hardest hit by the pandemic.”
The list included restaurants, retailers, service businesses, hotels and manufacturers.
Of the recipients, most are located in Marysville, with others coming from Richwood and elsewhere in Union County.
Additionally, 62 Union County businesses were awarded $10,000 grants from the Ohio Development Services Agency Small Business Relief Grant Program and 32 restaurants received an additional $2,500 in economic injury grants from the state.
“I am just happy we got $700,000 from these programs infused into the economy to help small businesses that need it,” Phillips said.
He said that while 2020 was difficult for many small businesses, the pandemic and imposed shutdowns showed the strength of many businesses.
“I think the word of the year is resiliency,” Phillips said. “The resiliency of our small businesses has been amazing. Our businesses had to change so often and so quickly, but they have made the changes and done the things that needed to be done and it has been amazing.”
3. Union County Health Department
The role of public health made itself known during a year ravaged by the coronavirus.
The Union County Health Department began the year focused on increasing flu cases before quickly shifting gear to handle the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
UCHD issued a travel advisory in January before establishing an Emergency Operations Center in early March to coordinate the area’s response before the first case in the county was confirmed later that month.
The health department served as the go-to source for information, as it guided residents, businesses, schools and local governments through everchanging guidance from federal and state officials.
Many UCHD employees were forced to balance their normal positions with time spent doing disease investigation and contact tracing.
In April, officials considered implementing furlough days for health department employees because deliverables needed to receive grant funding were on hold. UCHD was ultimately able to avoid furloughs but staff continued to work in virus-related roles on top of their usual positions.
Public health employees assisted schools and businesses during Gov. Mike DeWine’s Stay at Home order in April before acting as a resource while sectors gradually reopened months later.
The health department worked to help businesses adjust to new guidelines and operate safely during the pandemic, despite a common misconception that it intended to close businesses.
“That’s not the role” of UCHD, Public Information Officer Jennifer Thrush said.
UCHD was especially integral in the restart of schools and a return to buildings.
Despite the risks associated with congregate settings, like schools, health officials said they viewed education from a holistic approach and recognized the social-emotional, physical and nutritional needs met by schools.
Health Commissioner Jason Orcena said UCHD’s ultimate goal was to “mitigate as much risk as possible to keep students and staff in buildings.”
UCHD continually evaluated emerging data – whether school dashboards or samples from wastewater treatment plants – to monitor the development of the pandemic in the community and adjust its response.
As orders shifted and cases fluctuated, local public health workers continued to promote aggressive testing and partnered with Lower Lights Christian Health Center to host drive-thru COVID-19 testing clinics multiple times each week.
Testing played a crucial role in keeping businesses open and people in school by ensuring the virus didn’t spread “beyond the most limited amount (of people) possible,” Orcena said.
The health department also prepared early on to distribute COVID-19 vaccinations on a large scale by hosting drive-thru flu clinics at the Union County Fairgrounds as a test run.
When area cases began to surge dramatically in November, UCHD employees ramped up their efforts even as staff was stretched thin. Orcena said it was not uncommon for employees to work extended days, six days a week, for weeks in a row. Some employees were working every day of the week for weeks on end.
At that point, UCHD asked the National Guard to offer an additional day of testing in Union County each week.
“The story is just so overwhelming at this point that there’s not much more to be said,” Health Orcena said at the time.
After months of preparation and relentless work, the health department’s efforts came to fruition in December, when UCHD received and administered its first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to local first responders.
4. Local industry
As it became clear the COVID-19 pandemic would last for a considerable amount of time, some manufacturers began using local associates and local ideas to help with the worldwide problem.
Honda began producing and delivering critical components for the production of ventilators.
ScottsMiracle-Gro also got involved in a number of initiatives to help amid the crisis.
“We literally took our R&D Formulation Barn and turned it into a manufacturing operation for hand sanitizer,” Paula Powell, Director of Hydroponic Nutrition & Controls R&D for ScottsMiracle-Gro, said in the spring.
The ScottsMiracle-Gro manufacturing facility in Temecula, California moved from making lawn care equipment like seed spreaders to making face shields and protective equipment, delivering thousands of them locally. Additionally, the company worked to develop a soil mix that could be used to create a plant-based vaccine for COVID-19.
But the pandemic had other impacts on local manufacturers.
In March, Honda announced it would suspend production from March 23 through March 30 and that the company would “continue to provide opportunities for associates to be paid.”
As COVID lingered, the shutdown extended, and Honda announced it would pay associates for some of the time off and allow them to use accrued or expected vacation to cover the loss of pay.
On April 6, the company said it would not continue to pay associates during the production suspension.
“These unprecedented circumstances require that we take some difficult actions in order to cope with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Honda spokesperson Chris Abbruzzese said at the time. “This includes implementing No Work Available (NWA) days during the continued production suspension in our plants.”
While the company was not paying employees, officials said Honda associates would “continue to receive their Honda benefits during this time.”
The company helped associates apply for government assistance while they were not receiving paychecks.
In May, associates returned to work as part of a staggered plan. As part of their first day back to work, associates learned new safety measures for the plant, specific to their job. Associates were required to scan their temperature before coming into the plant and wear a mask while working. Officials said associates were encouraged to provide feedback and suggestions for how to improve their processes during this return to production.
The shutdown reduced production by nearly 250,000 vehicles.
On the other hand, ScottsMiracle-Gro officials said the company “has been extremely blessed” with increased sales.
That announcement came in June as the company declined a proffered tax abatement on a planned $45 million expansion project
Ann Aquillo, with ScottsMiracle-Gro, said the company had been working with Marysville officials on the expansion plan and tax incentives for a significant amount of time. She said officials were ready to move forward with an agreement that would have provided a 75% property tax abatement for 10 years on a portion of the project.
“We realized a lot has changed since January,” Aquillo said at the time. “The world is a very different place.”
She said that while many businesses suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic, ScottsMiracle-Gro, has prospered. She said that as people are at home more, they have paid more attention to their lawns and gardens.
“We thought, ‘Maybe this isn’t the right time to ask for assistance, at least not in the way we had anticipated,’” Aquillo said.
5. Hospital and nursing homes
Memorial Hospital was ready for COVID and although the initial surge did not occur in the spring, the health system put in a series of safeguards to protect patients and staff members.
In mid-March the hospital suspended all sick bay and walk-in clinic hours and began rescheduling elective surgical procedures. The hospital also consolidated its public entrances and put visitors through a screening process. Patients were only allowed one visitor per day and the individual had to be over the age of 18.
The gift shop and cafeteria at the hospital were also closed to visitors.
In addition, Memorial Gables eliminated all visitation. The long-term care facility made arrangements to assist families and patients to talk through video visits.
Through the pandemic Memorial Meals continued to provide food to homebound individuals but suspended its group-setting community meals services. In fact, demand for the meals grew by 10% during the early months of the pandemic.
About a week after the initial round of safeguards, Memorial announced that it would allow no visitation at any of its facilities, outside of a few exceptions.
The disruptions between patients and care providers led Memorial, in late March, to set up a series of telehealth options for patients to use from their home that allowed them to connect with a variety of health system services.
Memorial continued to adjust safety guidelines such as implementing a facility wide mask mandate and setting up isolation space for those believed to be infected with the virus.
After managing the feared initial wave, Memorial began planning for elective surgeries in late May and in late June relaxed some visitation restrictions.
In September Memorial officials admitted that COVID had significantly hurt the system’s financial picture due to the downturn in elective surgeries and other procedures. Officials, however, were proud of the fact that no workers were let go during the slowdown.
“Our now 1,000 plus employees have been the backbone of our success and our amazing growth in the region,” Memorial CEO Chip Hubbs said. “We knew that we would need every single one of them when volumes started to increase again.”
The Gables was among several long-term care facilities impacted by the recent surge in Union County virus cases. On Nov. 9 the facility had its first resident test positive and over the following two weeks the facility would see 20 patient cases and 12 staff cases.
Walnut Crossing experienced a similar spike in cases, as it recorded 38 resident cases and 16 staff cases on Nov. 18.
Of the 19 COVID-19 related deaths in Union County, 12 occurred in long-term care facilities, although the Ohio Department of Health does not specify which facility.
The recent local virus surge also caused Memorial to once again prohibit visitors at all facilities beginning on Nov. 20.
6. Unemployment claims
The number of Union County residents filing for unemployment benefits went from 180 in March to 3,600 in April as a result of the COVID slowdown.
“There is no doubt, the number is staggering,” said Eric Phillips, Union County economic development director.
Pushed by temporary furloughs at Honda, Union County’s unemployment rate streaked into double digits. At one point, the state of Ohio had a special dedicated phone number to service only Honda employees seeking benefits.
The county’s unemployment percentage jumped from 3.5% to 16.7% in one month. Honda resumed to full production in mid-May, helping the number decline to 8.8%. The number continued to steadily drop to 7.3% in June and 5.9% in July, before a small uptick to 6% in August. It fell again to 5.2% in September before dropping all the way to 3.4% in October.
November figures show the number has settled again in the pre-COVID range at 3.5%, fourth lowest in the state of Ohio.
7. Events
St. Patrick’s Day events were the swan song for public gatherings in 2020.
Following the state’s mandated shutdown in March and ban on large public gatherings, organizers of spring and summer festivals began to worry. As Governor Mike DeWine failed to waver on his mandates, community events began to fall like dominoes. Some chose to cancel immediately while others continued to plan, hoping for good news.
Memorial Day activities were among the first public events to cancel.
Other canceled events included Plain City’s Rock the Clock, FestiFair, Fourth of July events, the All Ohio Balloon Fest and area Christmas Parades.
Also, all of the county’s Bicentennial Celebration plans were called off.
Organizers of the Marysville Homecoming Parade were creative in trying to save the event, setting up a backwards parade in which teams and organizations were assigned to certain areas of the uptown and supporters drove by to honk and waive.
Some events were forced to modify their activities in order to be saved. The Union County and Richwood fairs were allowed to hold their junior fair animal competitions but scrapped most other activities. The Union County Community Care Train was forced to hold an online only event, turning away the live crowds that gather annually to bid on items.
8. Government
State, county, city and municipal operations deemed non-essential all closed for brief periods in the early weeks of the virus. Marysville City Hall and the Union County Courthouse were closed to visitors.
Public meetings became anything but – as most boards began to meet virtually and many are still meeting remotely now.
Marysville and Plain City pushed back their tax filing deadlines and most municipalities were lenient with their utility shutoffs during the virus’ early stages. The state of Ohio also allowed leniency on renewals for drivers licenses and tags as its bureaus were closed.
9. Elections
The election process was thrown into a shambles in 2020.
Many people may only recall the national clamor created by mail-in voting in the fall and the fraud claims that followed, but the March primary was utter chaos as well.
In March, after early voting had been ongoing for a week, the state called off the March 17 election day just hours before polls were to open to prevent the spread of the virus.
In-person voting was not allowed for most Ohioans and those still wishing to vote were required to request an absentee ballot which had to be received by May 8.
By the November general election, Ohio voters were allowed to cast votes by mail, vote early at their boards of elections or go to the polls on election day where special protocols were put in place to limit any exposure to the virus.
10. Churches
Church services and the accompanying close-quarters singing were found to be some of the earliest spreader events of the pandemic.
DeWine did not expressly prohibit religious gatherings, but many local churches chose to initially cancel in-person gathering, choosing instead to broadcast the service online.
As the weather warmed, many groups got creative in their plans for services. Some gathered outdoors or held drive-in services, one even deciding to hoist the pastor into a scissor lift for the program.
As sanitization and distancing guidelines became more regulated most churches returned to some form of in-person gathering as spring turned into summer.