POST FALLS, Idaho — It's not often that parents and students would link early May with the emotions associated with going back to school.
At Post Falls' Cornerstone Academy, however, last week could have felt like early September for some students.
"It's heart-healing," said Reverend John Young, the executive director of the private Christian School. "It just really has been a heart-healing for everybody to see the kids come back and engage with their teachers."
After closing the small school due to concerns surrounding coronavirus on March 17, Cornerstone officially welcomed students back to class last Monday.
Not everything was back to normal, however.
According to Young, the school implemented several changes to meet federal and local social distancing guidelines. Notably, Cornerstone students currently attend only a half day of classes and learn core subjects. Half of the students in a given class attend in the morning while the other half attend in the afternoon, explained Young. The remainder of students' assigned learning is completed at home.
"So [students] are still getting interaction with the teacher, but we're still in limited class sizes. So it kind of fit the ability to get jump-started on this," Young said.
With sparser class sizes, staff spread out desks and students to accommodate social distancing. Additionally, Cornerstone implemented numerous hourly cleaning protocols.
"It's just constant cleaning," said Young.
Cornerstone, an accredited Kindergarten through eighth grade school, currently has roughly 120 enrolled students. The school doesn't have any seventh or eighth graders this year, however, Young said. Cornerstone also operates a daycare and preschool with 50 enrolled children.
With class sizes already capped at 20 students, Young said it was easier for the school to adapt social distancing guidelines.
Moreover, Cornerstone already operates on a year-round school model as part of its educational philosophy. Students receive the same amount of school days as a traditional school, but the days are spread out over the course of a school year.
"We're used to being in school for a couple of weeks each month, then we have a week off, a couple weeks in. So we go year-round," explained Young, adding that the school will be able to adapt its schedule to account for days lost due to the COVID-19 closure.
While the school is accredited in Idaho and meets state standards, Young said the private school doesn't fall under the authority of the Idaho State Board of Education. Regardless, Cornerstone worked with the Panhandle Health District on its efforts to reopen its doors and implement social distancing protocols.
"[Panhandle Health] has been excellent in communication and advisement. I'm very appreciative of their efforts," said Young in a message to KREM.
The Idaho State Board of Education has extended its soft closure of public schools through the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. Public schools can reopen, however, if they meet state board guidelines and both statewide and local social distancing orders have been lifted.
Both Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls have elected to not have in-person learning until this coming fall, according to local reports.
In speaking with KREM, Young emphasized that Cornerstone Academy wasn't trying to brag about its ability to reopen this school year. He explained that the school's small size and schedule simply allowed them to make necessary changes. Additionally, Cornerstone doesn't have to deal with cleaning large areas like gyms or cafeterias like other schools might have to.
There is one recommendation, however, that Young admitted the private school isn't strictly following.
"The only thing we're not necessarily staying compliant on is hugs," he said. "It's because it's hard for us to not want to get those from the kids and return those back."