A couple of the South Washington School District’s “heroes” of the past year were honored at the school board meeting last Thursday night.

Communications Specialist Laura Born and Licensed School Nurse Tara Goebel were recognized for helping the district and families navigate the COVID-19 school year.

“I cannot overestimate the importance of communications, especially during a pandemic,” said Director of Communications and Community Relations Pepe Barton.

He said he was out of state when the first COVID-19 case affected sports programs last summer.

“She informed me there was a positive case in one of our sports bubbles,” he said, noting he had poor cell service where he was traveling.

“When I climbed out of the valley, all of the little dings kept coming in on my phone and the emails started coming in. She managed to take care of the situation without me,’” said Barton. “From then on, I knew I could count on her for everything, and it really formed us as a team. I was thankful she was able to really take the situation by the horns,” he said. “She got a letter out to the families and made sure they knew what to do during a quarantine.”

“I depend on her quick judgment for all types of situations, noting her job entails monitor situation reports and getting letters out to families and staff.

“Since the beginning of the school year, Laura has written more than 1,500 letters to keep our families and staff informed in the pandemic.”

Born started in her job in November 2019.

“Her role turned into nonstop crisis support for our schools, answering phone calls from families, updating the website and social media and doing it all with the most positive personality you’ve ever seen. She’s had no complaints,” said Barton.

Director of Special Education Anna Braun then recognized Tara Goebel, whom she referred to as “school nurse extraordinaire.”

“She puts her heart into her work and goes above and beyond to make sure all health processes are going smoothly through the district,” said Braun.

“Tara has been working days, nights and weekends since last March,” said Braun.

In addition to setting up contact tracing for cases when notified, she set up COVID testing for staff and vaccinations right at Park High School.

“She has been a source of unwavering support, and we are extremely grateful for her leadership,” said Braun.

At the close of the meeting Assistant Superintendent Kristine Schaefer talked about the recent return to in-person school for secondary students.

“Last week, our secondary students in grades 6-12 returned to in person learning four days a week, and for many staff and students it was like the first day of school,” she said. “We’re happy to get so many students back in school, some for the first time.”

She noted that one high school student had to ask where a room was, as he hadn’t been in the school yet this year.

She cautioned those traveling near schools to watch for students.

“We’re experiencing higher volumes of traffic at dropoff and pick-up times,” she said. “Please be sure to give yourself plenty of time and take a moment to appreciate the beauty of seeing families dropping off children at our schools. It’s been a long time.”