DEL NORTE — During the regular meeting of the Upper Rio Grande School District Board of Education, Del Norte High School Principal Annie Hardy gave an update on some of the programs that are being brought back after almost two and a half years hiatus.

The district is working to get back to what has been termed “normalcy” in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are returning to normal, whatever normal is right? We were happy to have Homecoming, we had weekly festivities, pep rallies with dress-up days, teen competitions and we did Tiger Rag which it was really nice to bring that back, we hosted our parade, and we had a great time at our dance,” said Hardy.

The high school has been focusing on different groups that used to meet prior to COVID and Hardy has been working with teachers, staff, and the student body to restart those meetings.

“Academically, there are a lot of things going on including parent-teacher conferences and we are talking about how to make those better, not just for the school but for the community as well,” said Hardy.

Hardy said that the High Valley Community Center is providing stipends to the Junior and Senior teachers who are interested in helping with their after-school tutor program that runs throughout the school week from 4 to 5:30 p.m. This is an excellent opportunity for any student enrolled at High Valley Community to get help with all subjects.

In addition to the after-school tutor program, the center is also looking to jumpstart a Youth Enterprise Zone program which could provide stipends for participating students up to $1,000 and Adam State University credits. The initial program projects would run January through May with stipends available for supporting teachers and students.

“Our college calculus class is kind of exciting. We have eight students in there and the last test that they took showed that the lowest score was an 82.6 percent, and the highest score was 99 percent. The upper-level Spanish classes are collaborating with a class in Guadalajara, Mexico. They are having cultural discussions which include favorite music, foods and restaurants. Students are making videos and sending it to students in Guadalajara and students in Guadalajara are sending videos back,” explained Hardy.

Hardy continued telling the board about trade class students who have been creating wooden boxes both with hand tools and power tools and using push sticks which is a means for carpenters to cut wood without the danger of injury.

The theatre department is busy per usual building sets and holding play practices for the coming holiday season. The class was also working on what is called “scary model mods” and hosted the junior high school students in the auditorium for scary stories which ended in lots of screams of joy and fright. The board watched a video of the students reacting to the stories which brought laughter all around.

The district is looking to host more community-oriented events in the coming weeks.