Powder River Examiner -

The Senior Class of 2020 has had a senior experience unlike any other, with the coronavirus shut down affecting nearly every facet of the final months of their high school careers. The class has missed out on their senior prom, their senior trip, spring sports, a "normal" graduation, after grad party, and numerous other events. On top of that, they miss the final few months of school – that special golden hour, not unlike the time between sunset and darkness, when seniors are "masters of their domain" but done with most of their school work, before trudging off into the real world.

We spoke with several of the Seniors to record their thoughts during this unique time.

For Karli Collins and Jadyn Traub, the last day of "normal" school – March 13, was one they will look back on with bittersweet memories. "That was our last day to walk the halls as a student," Jadyn commented.

"If we would've known that was the last day we'd see everyone as a class, we would've had some closure," Collins said. "Now, it's just different."

When school closed abruptly on Monday, March 16th, the teachers and faculty scrambled to transition their lesson plans to a take-home format, and from what we've heard from parents, teachers, and students, the plan was for the most part successful. At first, students brought home two week's worth of work, then, when the stay at home orders were extended, teachers sent home work until the end of April. If on May 1st the student was found to be "proficient", or passing a class, they wouldn't have to come back for the rest of the school year.

While the kids were away from school, a number of them had other jobs. Beau Kuhbacher spent his days working on the family ranch, whether that meant calving or farming with Dad, then doing homework at home with Mom, along with helping his four younger siblings.

Beau commented: "I was hoping to be about done with homework here towards the end of school, but instead we had more to get done".

Jadyn said that she had finished her work for the year, when we talked to her last week, while Karli was still working to complete her assignments. Both girls worked on the yearbook, and said their tasks wer complete in that class.

While the school work itself was one challenge to overcome, the time spent away from classmates and other activities was trying for students, especially with the large number of event cancellations.

Karli had planned on competing in Track this spring, where she hoped to improve her performances from last season, and looked forward to State Track. With the school closure came an eventual cancellation of spring sports, and an end to Karli's high school track career.

The Seniors also missed out on their final prom. Beau Kuhbacher said that he had purchased special clothing just for prom, but with the cancellation he didn't have the chance to wear his special duds. So, he and his date have decided to dress up and take pictures in their prom outfits, even though there's no high school prom to attend.

Jadyn and Karli had also made clothing purchases for prom, which was originally scheduled for late March.

The Senior Trip was cancelled, as was an informal Senior Skip day, which certainly wasn't something on the books, but nevertheless will be missed by those who planned to attend. Jadyn told us that a portion of the funds in the senior account that were to pay for the trip will be donated to a school organization, while other portions of the fund will go to buy yearbooks for each class member, with the remaining funds divided up to pay for scholarships for those attending college, and gas cards for those seniors headed to the work force.

The Senior Class has plans to hold a graduation on June 27, if the coronavirus phases are lifted in a timely fashion. What that graduation will look like is still up in the air, though plans are likely to include a limited number of invited guests and proper social distancing procedures, while other attendees may watch from their cars, or online via video broadcast.

An after grad party is still a possibility after the graduation. In the meantime, the seniors may receive a surprise, courtesy of some Broadus Alumni. The details of this situation are still confidential.

Another change for this year's Seniors – just as many were on the verge of adulthood, the US moved the age to buy nicotine products from 18 to 21. This change took place in late December of 2019, and applied to those who were already 18.

As for the future plans of the Seniors we spoke to, Karli plans on attending Miles Community College this fall, and Jadyn plans to attend MSU-Billings. Beau has plans to attend Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming, but is going to hold off on signing up for classes to make sure fall semester will take place before committing.

Class President Jadyn Traub summed up her thoughts on the entire situation: "This was all a once in a lifetime opportunity that we're not going to get back, but we'll be fine. They can't take that away from us."