Why are we not using lockers this year at WHS? What about backpacks?

This is being done to adapt to the current reality of going to school in a pandemic. It is impossible to socially distance at the lockers. They are too close together. Most high schools and middle schools are doing the same thing. Once this passes, we will return to using the lockers just as we have in the past. The reduced number of students in the classrooms should help to address the egress concerns of the fire department. The pandemic has really created a situation where we have to balance the risk of being infected with COVID-19 against the risk of having backpacks in the classrooms as a hindrance to evacuation. We are also creating outdoor classrooms, as are HCMS and WES, for the same reasons after everything being highly secured in past years.