By ANNA HALL
Hart County Charter System
Missy Vaughn’s days have often been filled with touching moments — times when she has been able to lend an ear, a helping hand, a new opportunity to the students of Hart County. As the licensed clinical social worker for the Hart County Charter System, Vaughn often dives deep into the lives of students she works with and ensures they stay on the right path, both academically and outside of school.
In fact, most of her work is done outside the confines of school walls. With a shelter-in-place order, the closing of schools and independent learning going on until May 15, when the school year will end, Vaughn has put her skills fostering hope and optimism in Hart’s students to work. She is more than ready to heed the call and be there for her students.
“I also have a son who is a senior, and he is having to miss all these milestones, all those moments that come with the end of your high school years,” Vaughn said. “But he is dealing with it, accepting, like we all are. This is the new normal.”
That new normal, thanks (or not) to COVID-19, while seemingly daunting, has come with meaningful moments that remind her why she does what she does, and why she loves it. That happened recently, when dropping off a curriculum packet at a student’s home. The student was standing on the front porch, not expecting to see Vaughn or waiting for anything in particular. But when Vaughn approached to drop off the new learning materials, the student’s face lit up.
“She was so happy to see me. Not as happy I was to see her, because I miss these students and I miss being able to interact with them every day, but she said she was happy to see a person she hadn’t seen in, what is it now, four weeks?” Vaughn said. “She also said she was glad to have the school work because, honestly, she was bored and she was looking forward to having school work to do. Maybe that’s one silver lining to this strange situation we are all in. Homework is welcomed.”
Homework it is — literally. On a recent adventure, Vaughn drove some 90 minutes to deliver a student’s learning packet. The student had moved during this ever-evolving situation and wasn’t able to register in the new school district, so the family is still part of the Hart County Charter System. The work needed to be completed and Vaughn stepped up and stepped in, taking the packet to the student’s new address.
Acts like this, acts of kindness and selflessness, are nothing new for Vaughn or for the community in general these days. From her perspective, terms like kindness and selflessness, have become synonymous with the new normal. Teachers, administrators, community volunteers, have come to the plate to help with delivering food, delivering learning packets and doing what needs to be done to make sure students can complete a school year when everyone is seemingly improvising.
“It’s really been amazing, how people have just come out and been willing to help,” she said. “Teachers and school officials, everyone, really, has gone out their way to make sure our students are getting all they need as independent learning continues.”
For some students, distance learning has even been a turning point. Having the time to pace themselves, work on their own schedule and with their own creative resources, has allowed some students to see what they are capable of and what they can achieve on their own terms. The unprecedented experience the community is facing has allowed families to connect with each other, with students’ teachers through digital formats and opened venues of innovative learning experiences which may have otherwise not been tapped.
Sure, she admits, there have and will continue to be challenges, but the energy she has felt from her student visits and within the community are enough to keep her positive attitude going.
“Between phone calls, emails, online meetings, I have seen our students and their families rally for one another,” she said. “They are, and we all are, taking the time to meditate on feelings of gratitude, of taking the time to enjoy the small words of praise and assurance that everything will be okay. This may not be the easiest of times, but it is bringing out the best in people and I see that when I see students and families, when I see the community coming together. That is definitely encouraging.”
As for J.D., Vaughn’s famed therapy pig, he’s doing just fine, as well. However, while he may be less than aware of the current situation and overhanging pandemic, he does know something is a bit off. Every now and then, he’ll give Vaughn a side glance, as if to question this new routine happening in the Vaughn household.
“Oh, J.D., he keeps looking at me like, ‘what are you doing here at this time?’” Vaughn laughed. “I think he may be a little annoyed that I am home more than usual, but like the rest of us, he is adjusting.”