On an unforgettable Friday afternoon in mid-March 2020, Utah officials ordered a “soft close” of all public schools in response to the developing coronavirus pandemic.
Districts handed out printed packets of school work or started trying to figure how to teach online for two weeks, with hopes of returning in person by the end of the month. But classrooms stood empty until autumn.
And as they reopened, closed for outbreaks, and reopened again, a tale of two school districts emerged.
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