MR. REINFELD SHARES HIS EXPERIENCES WITH GOA’S COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS

By Giselle Weiss ‘24

    Due to COVID-19, Golda Och Academy instituted guidelines to keep the school community safe. Students know how these restrictions affect them, but they do not necessarily know how they affect faculty members. Mr. Reinfeld, who has just started his first year working as a guidance counselor at GOA, provides a better understanding of how these regulations have impacted the faculty’s jobs.

    “In my old school I would like to go into classrooms a lot and move around the building kind of as much as possible to see students and really know how your day is, and of course that’s a lot harder this year,” Mr. Reinfeld said. “It’s not as safe for me to kinda just go in and out of rooms, so in that part it’s tricky.” 
    Not only is Mr. Reinfeld more confined to an office than in the past, but masks make it difficult to learn names and faces, already a challenge for those who are new to a school or job. 
    “Getting to recognize people has been very hard when I only get from the top of the nose up. It is just really much harder for me to remember people’s faces and that’s kind of embarrassing to call someone the wrong name… especially being new,” Mr. Reinfeld said.
    Furthermore, no plans can be made spontaneously; everything has to be scheduled and planned for. This makes creating special programming harder for both teachers and students. 
    “I think a lot more things need to be scheduled now,” Mr. Reinfeld said. “There are a lot of questions like how many people can safely be in this room and what times can we really move people around the building. So there is a lot less room for impromptu interactions. There is definitely more structure and less flexibility this year.”
    Although there are some challenges, he suggests that there are also ideas and guidelines that, while coming first out of necessity, could be useful even after the pandemic in more normal circumstances.
    “I think that parent-teacher conferences should continue to have a virtual option because that worked really well,” Mr. Reinfeld said.
    The restrictions and guidelines at GOA have proved to be effective thus far. The required social distancing and masks have worked to keep our school safe and healthy. Mr. Reinfeld, along with the rest of the GOA community is extremely grateful to be able to come in for in-person instruction rather than learning remotely. Keeping school safe is the utmost priority for everyone associated with GOA. Mr. Reinfeld remarks that although these new restrictions may be taxing and present new challenges, they are there for the benefit of both students and faculty. 
    ​“You know, I think that’s really the ultimate test is everytime we have one of those periods where everyone has to get tested and we come back and there are no positive cases,” Mr. Reinfeld said. “I really try to judge things based on how well they work, and it is working. I like that.” 
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