Anne is a team leader and science teacher at the Nordonia Middle School. She is the 8th grade class advisor, and yearbook adviser. And she can now add Nordonia High School Girls Varsity Tennis Coach to the list.
COVID-19 changes at school – Some of the changes according to Anne are: tables are turning into desks, they are changing the distance between the desks, they are changing the flow of the hallways and floors (there are three levels of classrooms at the Middle School), and there will be some changes in the cafeteria. The instructors are asked to limit personal items in the classroom and things that cannot be wiped down easy. She has been a science teacher for 20 years, so she has a lot to go through! Most students now will not have lockers. And many teachers are now changing over to having more digital binders and less for the student to carry.
As of the date of this interview, she had not been in her classroom yet to see all the changes. She will be walking in for the first time since COVID-19 on Monday August 24th.
I asked her about her athletic background, and she mentioned that she played tennis competitively at Magnificat High School in the 90’s. She has been a JV coach in the past.
COVID-19 changes on the court – Some of the changes are: more social distancing, temperature checks, and they wear masks unless they are warming up, practicing, or conditioning. As for the matches, each girl gets two tennis balls, they write on the ball which team is using them and only the home team can change the score card. Spectators at home games have a new place. They set up their lawn chairs on the grass on the south side. When the students are traveling to games on the bus, they incorporate staggard seating.
There are 22 girls on the roster. 8 full time varsity, two going back and forth, and 12 are JV. Only one team in Parma, had to cancel but another game was added to the schedule. She has three seniors this year.
She won the Superintendent’s award this year for her work at the Nordonia Middle School. Anne said: “Most teachers feel it is like the Oscars. It is quite an honor. We don’t go into teaching expecting to be recognized, but when you have made an impact on a student’s life and they remember it four, five, six years later. It is something you don’t forget.”
Anne added: “I enjoy working with some past students. Two thirds of the varsity girls she had as students. It is so neat to be back with them again. It is a nice tight-knit group – like a family and they support each other. It is just an amazing group of girls.”
