The student body of Miami High is many things; however, it’s hardly a study of uniformity. Multiple interviews, however, have shown that the average students have a rather uniform opinion on the mandation of masks, or perhaps this opinion is simply pervasive enough that even those that believe otherwise dare not speak their own opinion.

Mask Mandation: The Consensus

Regardless, the common consensus is that whilst freedom of choice is important, so too, is safety. Alex Abbad, a freshman honor student, believes that in any large grouping of people masks should be worn and enforced. He said, “You never honestly know who has Covid around you. They could be asymptomatic, and then what? You go home, infect your mom, infect your grandma, all because you didn’t wear a mask.”

Sophomore Steven Abarra strongly believes the spread of Covid-19 could have    been contained far more efficiently through simply enforcing the rules set in place for the virus.

“From the beginning no one really enforced [Covid] rules,” he said, ‘and that’s honestly why we’re still dealing with it!” He earnestly believes that Covid is thoroughly out of hand.

So does sophomore Daneisys Ferrurino who adds, “People are still dying everyday, and some people still say it’s not that bad! But it is; it really is.” All three interviewed students agreed that masks should be mandated in large groupings of people; however, in small company, it should be up to the individual.

Sickness: The Experience

Covid-19 has had many strands, variants, and surges. Many people have been affected, and just as many students have had it as have known someone with it. Perhaps someone else gave it to another student or maybe their own family. One student who had the virus was junior Lucas Faren who says, “It was a terrifying experience, I couldn’t taste anything, I felt sick, and I knew I was a danger to my family.”

Another victim of this sickness was freshman Aila Cordone who contracted Covid at school and infected her bedridden mother. She said, “I thought she was dead. I thought I killed my mom!” Aila shows the tragic reality of this virus. Once you get infected, you are a danger to everyone you spend time with, and you might not even know it.

Jorge Andia is a sophomore who has not been infected himself; however, he saw first-hand how it spread. “Both of my brothers had it,” he said. “They got tested and it came back negative, then the next day everyone else in my house was sick. Everyone had it. It was a mess. I stayed with my aunt for a few days, and when I came home, my grandpa had died.”

Preventative Measures: The Suggestions

The apparent accord in Miami High is that the regulations created to contain Covid-19 weren’t enforced well enough and more could have been done. Several students shared additional measures they believe could have been taken to reduce the impact of the Covid epidemic. Freshman Aylin Guillen believes that the unenforced practices of social safety are problematic, stating that, “They [The government] kept opening and closing everything [restaurants, stores, parks, etc.], and honestly they should have been consistent about it!”

Alternatively, freshman Yanese Ellington believes that while everything should have stayed open, victims of the virus should have had more assistance given to them.  Another intriguing thought was shared by senior Fabien Ramirez who believes that Miami Senior High itself should be changed. “The school’s too crowded,” he said. Fabien believes that online schooling- much like what we did during the 2020-2021 school year- was very effective in containing the spread of Covid among youth. However, he also believes the online curriculum of Miami High is lacking and needs to be improved.