How the pandemic forever altered the shape of education in Minnesota

Minnesota schools and colleges got a lesson in whiplash changes this year.

School buildings opened and closed. Events were announced and then canceled. Celebrations marked milestones in the glow of a Zoom window instead of with friends and classmates. For students, teachers, principals and parents, stresses piled upon stresses, from COVID-19 pandemic illness and isolation to economic struggles and social unrest. School districts grappled with wild, unexpected enrollment and budget swings. Professors broadcast lessons from their living rooms. Teachers spent their days reminding students to wear their masks, wash their hands and avoid getting too close to friends.

It's too early to calculate the many ways this year will leave its mark on the state's education system, but it's clear that some things will never be the same. State projections show that it could be years before school enrollment returns to prepandemic levels. Online learning, once a limited offering in the state's K-12 schools, will become a permanent fixture of new virtual academies and college campuses. The pandemic has left people contemplating other lasting changes, too.

As they finished out this chaotic school year, some of the thousands of people involved in education in Minnesota told the Star Tribune about what they've been through and what they think may change as schools and colleges emerge from the pandemic.