The year 2020 was definitely a year to remember. The COVID-19 pandemic completely changed the entire globe and affected the way we live our everyday lives.

Now, a year after the announcement of the pandemic, we can look back and see how COVID-19 has impacted our lives.

Education has been deeply affected by the pandemic. Starting towards the beginning of March 2020, the CDC announced a mandatory two-week “lockdown” for the education system. Teachers and students were required to allow teaching and learning from home. Zoom meetings were the top priority in figuring out this new learning environment for almost all schools.

Collaborating with the idea of a “lockdown,” mask mandates were required around the United States. Individuals were enforced to wear masks covering their nose and mouth in public. In the school environment today, desks are spread out from each other as much as possible, and masks are enforced.

At St. Dominic High School, the only time period where masks are able to be taken off is to drink water or during lunch, in which students are required to sit at every other seat. The new rules at school were originally tough to handle, but keeping the St. Dominic community safe and healthy is our top priority.

Restaurants have also changed rapidly and made adjustments due to the pandemic. Dine-in for almost all restaurants were prohibited at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. Individuals were only allowed to purchase food through a drive-through, if available, but today many restaurants have reopened with only the requirement of wearing a mask when entering the restaurant until the party is seated. Especially throughout warmer months of the year, outside seating has created an outlet for many to enjoy their food fresh, spread out, and with no mask requirement.

Personal changes have also contributed to the effect of COVID-19. Many Americans decided to start working out from home to pass boredom and change the way they live. Chloe Ting’s “Two Week Shred” workout was the most popular workout trending on YouTube during quarantine. The video now has 147 million views. Besides working out, many purchased box-dye to cure boredom, clean up their roots, or simply find a change while stuck inside.

Finally, live streaming has skyrocketed and provided a source for those to watch sports safely from home. St. Dominic’s journalism program and Mr. Small have worked tremendously on allowing our community to watch all Crusader events safely from home. By simply going to the St. Dominic website, clicking “Quick Links,” and then “Crusader Livestream,” Crusaders are given the opportunity to watch all sports, performing arts, special events, and more live.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly changed our world with the new procedures and requirements, we continue to live our lives in the safest and healthiest way possible. To learn and hear more about how the pandemic changed the last year, keep an eye out for our podcast with Kate Ryan, Cate Cato, and special guest Bryce Little to dive deeper and give their opinions on our new lifestyle.