THE @THEHURONEMERY
HURON EMERY HURON HIGH SCHOOL, 2727 FULLER RD., ANN ARBOR MI 48105
VOL. 8 ISSUE 1
NEWS PAGE 2 Here’s what to know about the mask mandate
The large amount of staff leaving Huron High School is but a piece of a national phenomenon. GRAPHIC BY KELLY PARK
Post-pandemic staff shortage: Why is it happening ANITA GAENKO OPINION EDITOR
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othing compares to the strong community of working in a school, according to former Huron High School counselor Emily Herzog. So why is it that Huron and other schools across the nation are losing unprecedented amounts of staff? In Ann Arbor the answer may be straightforward: there were better offers. “A new opportunity presented itself to me that was too good to pass up,” Herzog said. “Though I truly loved the work I was doing at Huron, I needed to do what was best for my professional growth and my family.”
Herzog originally came to work at Huron after working in college admissions and youth development. “I heard great things about AAPS, so I was eager to join the community,” Herzog said. Despite our school district’s reputation as one of the top three in the nation, according to Niche, many teachers and staff members have recently made the decision to move on to either new positions or retirement. In Herzog’s case, she has accepted a position at the University of Michigan. She plans to continue her work with young people, especially those who have been marginalized historically. Ann Arbor is not alone.
There are 300,000 vacancies in teaching and staff positions across the U.S., according to the National Education Association. Rural districts in Texas are planning to drop to four-day weeks, while Florida scrambles to fill vacancies with military veterans with no prior teaching experience. Administrators across the country are calling this the toughest teacher recruiting season they can remember. The issue lies in the entire teacher pipeline. Over the last 10 years, teacher education enrollment has dropped by 35 percent. Some states have even seen drops of more than 70 percent. Students who might have been interested in becoming educators see their own teach-
briefs
ANNA ESPER WEBSITE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF From Aug. 16-22, the river rats from band, orchestra, and choirs went up-north to the Interlochen Center for the Arts, where students participate in everything music. At the week-long camp, students stay in cabins where they get the opportunity to see old friends or make new ones. Ann Arbor Public School students perform what they learned
See Shortage, PAGE 2
FEATURE PAGE 6+7 Social media’s impact on society SCAN HERE
For more content on our website
Waleed Samaha leaves: The future of Huron Basketball
NEWS
INTERLOCHEN SUMMER CAMP
ers get better opportunities elsewhere, making the profession seem a lot less desirable. While these statistics may imply that the teacher shortage has been inevitable for the past decade, the effect of COVID-19 cannot be ignored. Fifty five percent of teachers in the National Education Association said that the pandemic drove them to plan to leave their profession earlier than expected in a February poll. Surveys conducted by RAND Corp. show that the pandemic made teachers feel burned out, stressed and three times as likely as other adults to experience depression. Additionally, new controversial legislation has turned schools
FEATURE PAGE 4 The long journey to school
Left: Orchestra during the Sunday performance at Kresge Auditorium. Right: Cabin 2 campers compete in field activities against other cabins. COURTESY OF UNFENG BIAN AND KYLA ZHAO
throughout the camp, at the Kresge Auditorium, at the end of the week. Sophomore Selah Dowell attended Interlochen to develop her musical school and make connections with people in the orchestra community. “Besides learning new repertoire in chamber groups and orchestra, the week-long camp teaches us the values of responsibili-
ty, friendship and community,” Dowell said. The students followed an extremely rigorous schedule with four hour rehearsals everyday. But the day never ended without activities like an ice cream social or a talent show. Dowell particularly enjoyed the campfire, where the campers sang songs until midnight.
JACKSON POLLARD PHOTO EDITOR With over 300 total wins, two state runner-up finishes, two regional titles, seven district championships and 11 conference titles, Waleed Samaha, former head coach of the men’s basketball team, leaves behind a lasting legacy at Huron High School, earning the respect of many in the basketball community as a coach and a leader. “I was present this summer, but I was not leading,” Samaha said. “It was a difficult personal decision.
But I just think professionally, it was the right time for me and the right time for the program and I think the right time for the kids too. I think they’re excited.” The men’s basketball program operates in a way so unique and so special it has been coined “The Huron Way”, and is referred to as that by many. The culture built within the program extends way beyond the court and it’s shown by not just players, but coaches who also work in the building and around the district display it.
See Samaha, PAGE 10