By Alejandro Aaron, Student Reporter
The population of Alva has dropped since the school moved to online learning for the remainder of the semester.
Few students have come back to Alva since the school has announced the distance learning will continue for the rest of the semester and the school facilities have only a few teachers and students.
The pandemic has done a lot to only Northwestern, schools around the nation, but to schools around the world. The number of lives the pandemic has affected and put fear in the hearts of people.
With the fears of the pandemic, a lot of students have not come back to get personal belongings in the dorms, while few are staying in the dorms for the duration of the semester. A few students have been using a positive approach to go about being in Alva during this time.
“I would rather be here in Alva even before this pandemic started,” Payton Taylor said. “Being at home is good for seeing family that you don’t get to see while you are at school, but once you spend a little time with them and do some catching up it is time to get back to work and go to school. It is all a part of growing up. Most people don’t get to be around their family their entire life, you have to grow up eventually and this prepares you for it.”
Taylor has chosen to come back to Alva, to help her focus back on school and with the decision to come back she is seeing both sides of the situation.
“There are pros and cons to every situation and I think being here is best for me,” Taylor said.
Few are still in the dorms and do not have a choice or aren’t happy about being in Alva.
“Not everyone likes to be home all the time,” Caitlyn Bidart said. “I could go home at any point and time I want to, but sometimes people need to be on their own or just where they feel is best for them which isn’t always home. I love home and I love my family to death, but I think Alva is the more positive environment for me right now.”
Alva is an isolated town by itself with being an hour away from the nearest city. A few times people have to travel through Alva to get to the destination he or she chooses, which Terry Atta-Peters understands fully.
“I came back from Dallas and they are locked down,” Terry Atta-Peters said. “Being that Dallas is a big city it can spread fast and makes me vulnerable to it pretty easily so I came back to Alva. Alva is a good spot to focus on yourself, school, and sports.”
Many students have dubbed Alva “Alvatraz” but it has helped many students in a positive way. Although Alva has downfalls, the upsides make a positive impact for people especially during this time of the pandemic.