‘There are some struggles.’ How SLO County high school principal is dealing with COVID-19

There was an eerie silence at Coast Union High School on the afternoon of Sept. 22.

A few teachers were conducting online learning from their classrooms due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But the Cambria campus felt eerily otherworldly without the energy of 190 students socializing, eating lunch, tossing around footballs and rushing to get to class on time.

“It is kind of depressing to see a school empty with no students interacting, eating or practicing sports,” Coast Union principal Scott Ferguson said.

Ferguson has been the principal at Coast Union High since 2016. He came up through the ranks at Madera South High School in the San Joaquin Valley, serving as vice principal for three years after teaching junior high English, history and working as a literacy coach and English language development coach for two decades.

Then the 6-foot-7 Ferguson left the valley and accepted the top administrative leadership role for a small public school after working at a school with 12 times as many students — around 3,000.

Was this his biggest career break?

“Completely. Yes,” Ferguson said. “What a great opportunity to come here to a small-town setting, in a beautiful, beautiful area. The great cool weather was a blessing for my wife.

“She’s got some ailments that had a big impact on her” in the often torrid heat in San Joaquin Valley,” Ferguson said. “Coming here has been night and day for a lot of health reasons.”

What is Coast Union High School like during coronavirus?

Ferguson’s customary routine prior to Coast Union High’s coronavirus-related shutdown included meeting buses in the morning and “greeting students until the bell rings, walking the campus and making sure they all got to class.”

“I always encourage them to hurry: ‘Let’s go let’s go let’s go, the bell rang,’ ” the principal said.

He also made rounds during breaks between classes, during lunch hour and after school.

When Ferguson was not patrolling the campus. he was in his office, dealing with “non-stop” paperwork that all administrators face.

There may not be students in classrooms at Coast Union, but several teachers prepare materials for students to come to campus to pick up and take home to complete assignments.

“There’s bags out there right now for a horticulture class,” Ferguson said. “Staffers put together seeds and pots and soil and instructions for kids to pick up and grow at home.”

Suzette Morrow has put together art kits with paint, colored pencils, markers and sketch pads. “Kids pick those up so they can do artwork at home,” Ferguson said.

The 16 students in Ayen Johnson’s robotics class pick up kits enabling them to conduct experiments and build devices at home.

In addition to kits, students also come to the campus to pick up textbooks and library books, Ferguson said. Since some parents don’t get off work in time to bring their children during school hours, Coast Union facilitates after-hours pick-ups of school materials.

“We’re doing anything we need to do to help students get their assignments done,” Ferguson said. “We’ve had staff go to houses to deliver materials to students. We’re trying everything to make a connection with students — keep them engaged and make sure they have what they need.”

Internet access presents challenges for teachers, students

The most significant tool students need in order to continue their education during the coronavirus pandemic is a reliable internet connection at home.

“There are some struggles,” Ferguson said, adding that “there are spots in Cambria” where online learning is limited because of poor access to the internet.

One of those areas where families are unable to access the internet is in the vicinity of San Simeon Creek Road, so Coast Unified School District has purchased 30 wi-fi devices to create T-Mobile hotspots, the principal said. “It doesn’t always work and for those students there is nothing to log into.”

The teachers working on campus and those teaching from home have adjusted lesson plans for the realities of online learning, which means shorter class sessions. “There’s not time to get as much done,” Ferguson said.

The principal’s job was to supervise all teachers’ daily presentations prior to the shutdown, and that remains his responsibility. The staff has developed a document that contains online codes “for every teacher for every period,” he said.

That allows Ferguson can log into any class in progress at any moment and observe as the teacher presents course materials to students. “I can pop into any teacher’s class,” he said. “I have the code so I can come in the middle of a class session.”

The teacher and students in classes Ferguson visits know he is present.

“The teacher will be talking and when they see I’m in there they will say, ‘Hi, Mr. Ferguson, how’s it going,’ and I love that because I get to see the students and the teacher,” he said.

He tells them, “ ‘Keep going, don’t mind me,’ and sometimes they say, ‘Hey, we have a question for you?’ and I interact with them.”

Dropping in during class sessions is essential for Ferguson because he still needs to prepare teacher evaluations.

On occasion, a teacher has a doctor’s appointment or other obligations and will miss his or her first period class. Ferguson enjoys “subbing for the class just like I would be if students were on campus. I did that today,” he said.

Will Cambria campus reopen amid COVID-19 pandemic?

Asked for his reaction to President Donald Trump’s announcement that schools that don’t fully reopen and bring students back to classrooms could lose out on federal funding, Ferguson said, “I sure would like to be back with the kids being here. That sure would be nice.”

It’s a “tough call,” the principal added, pointing to the potential danger of opening up campus too soon. “But at the same time, parents are struggling. It’s hard to do this (distance learning).”

Ferguson recounted a recent conversation he had with a student: “‘I’m having to work to help my family,’ the boy said, ‘so I’ve missed a couple classes and my grades aren’t doing great.’ ”

Ferguson said, “I keep telling the students how well adapted they will be after dealing with the pandemic, the heat wave, the fires and the political climate that they are facing as teenagers.

“It will make them stronger later in life,” he added. “We are working hard to make Coast Union High School as safe as possible to allow everyone back on campus, and we are planning for it.”

Family of athletes

Ferguson played basketball at Whittier Christian High School and Fresno Pacific University, and played football in Germany.

His two children made significant contributions to Coast Union.

Trent Ferguson played on the Bronco tennis team his freshman and sophomore years, and had a positive impact on the school’s Cyber Security Team his junior and senior years. He is attending Westmont College

Kaylee Ferguson, a 6-foot-tall center for the girls basketball team, was an essential component to the Broncos winning the Coast Valley League in the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 school years — by 10-0 finishes.

She was First Team All-League both years, and MVP her junior year. She attends Cuesta College.

This story was originally published September 26, 2020 at 5:00 AM.