By: Kiara Jones
After five months since the 2020-2021 school year began, dates for SHS picture days have finally been set. The reasoning for this delay is because of the COVID-19 pandemic that first hit the U.S. drastically in March 2020.
It was decided that picture day this year would occur over multiple days. Mrs. Pavkovic sent out the information about the picture days on Wednesday, February 17. The original picture day date set for students with last names beginning with A-L was Tuesday, February, 23. Later, on the same day, it was decided that the Tuesday, February, 23 picture day would be rescheduled to occur on Tuesday, March, 2. As for students who attend school in-person with last names beginning with M-Z, it will occur on Thursday, February 25.
A previous email sent out by Ms. Morningstar included a flyer with safety precautions and information on how to order school pictures online. Christmas City Studio is responsible for taking Salisbury’s school pictures this year. The flyer with safety precautions was created by the company to ensure safety. As stated on the subheading of the safety precautions flyer, “Safety is Our Priority.” The safety protocols made by Christmas City Studio, “…follow the guidelines and recommendations of the Center for Disease Control (CDC), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards relating to COVID-19.” These protocols include: proper disinfection procedures, no-contact posing, social distancing and face coverings. Also the flyer states that there will be flexible and safe picture day scheduling, all-online digital workflows and direct home fulfillment option availability. Although the company has made changes on how they take pictures, their, “…goal remains the same, to ensure you receive this essential photography service and families can continue to receive quality school portraits.”
Another flyer was sent via the same email with a code to type into the Christmas City Studio website for ordering pictures online. This year the physical picture order form was eliminated. As stated in the flyer by Christmas City Studio, “This is a huge change for us, many of our customers prefer to use a traditional order form but we felt eliminating the physical paper form was the safest move for our entire community.” However, printed on the same flyer it states, “For anyone who needs a traditional form, we have delivered a limited number of forms to your school office.” As for Salisbury High School, according to Mrs. Pavkovic, “Yes, we do have some traditional forms in the office.”
In a separate email, Mrs. Pavkovic sent out two accessible charts set with in-person students’ times for each individual student to get their picture taken. The charts are ordered by alphabetical last name and also include their grade and which school model was chosen for them. The pictures will be taken in the high school’s auditorium. Regarding why the schedule was sent out, Mrs. Pavkovic stated in the email, “The schedule has been created so we can maintain social distancing.” In the email it confirms that passes will not be issued for going to the auditorium.
When students take their picture, they will receive a free ID card. Even if the student did not purchase pictures, they are still able to take their picture for the yearbook and receive the card. If a student were to choose to not take part in picture day, they will not be eligible to get an ID card.
Students who attend school virtually, which includes VAST students, will have their picture day on Wednesday, March 10. This picture day is also a makeup day for students who missed their earlier picture day. This information was sent out in a separate email by Ms. Morningstar. Along with the information, attached was the same flyer sent in a previous email with safety protocols and a link to sign up for a picture time on signupgenis.com. The pictures will be taken in the Salisbury High School from 4:00-6:00 pm. To pick out a time period, you must sign in to the website and choose a two-minute time slot for your picture to be taken. Two students at a time are able to share the same time period.
In conclusion, Salisbury High School’s 2020-2021 school year picture days are Thursday, February, 25, Tuesday, March, 2 and Wednesday, March, 10. February 25 being for in-person students with last names beginning with M-Z, March 2 being for in-person students with last names beginning from A-L, and lastly March 10 being a makeup picture day and for virtual and VAST students. Online order forms and further information was emailed to SHS students regarding their status on when they will be taking their picture and what safety protocols are in place. For virtual and VAST students, a link has been sent via email to sign up for their picture day time.
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