As a society, we fell down the rocky path of COVID-19, which further mutated into strains like the infamous Delta and Omicron variants. Frustratingly enough, even after going through so much, people are still refusing to test, refusing to get vaccinated, and refusing to take the proper precautions in order to keep others safe. And on top of that, allegedly students are showing up to school knowing they have been exposed or are positive with COVID-19. If this ignorance continues, Omicron will be with us for the long haul.

A lot of confusion around the CDC’s new five-day quarantine guidelines for asymptomatic individuals has been forming. Despite the new policy, San Diego Unified still uses a ten-day rule for quarantine. Vice Principal Alex Villalobos said, “As we get informed of a possibly exposed student, we contact the family to confirm any exposures. Mr. Paredes, Mr. Lincoln, and I spread out the emails we get informing us about the students at school that have been exposed, then pull them out of class to start their quarantine.” Villalobos also mentioned that a few students that had posted on social media that they tested positive were sent home when they arrived at school that Monday after winter break. It’s extremely vital that those who may have been exposed or infected get tested, inform the school, and take the appropriate amount of time to quarantine per district guidelines. Otherwise, we are doomed for a school-wide superspreader.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “The Omicron variant likely will spread more easily than the original SARS-CoV-2 virus and how easily Omicron spreads compared to Delta remains unknown. CDC expects that anyone with Omicron infection can spread the virus to others, even if they are vaccinated or don’t have symptoms.” The Omicron variant is spreading faster than the original strain, which was already spreading fast enough. Yet still, mask-wearing and basic guidelines have yet to be properly followed (cdc.gov).

As is obvious if you look around school, not everybody follows the simple guidelines set to slow the spread of COVID-19. Wearing a mask is not the end of the world; it just goes over the nose and under the chin. The world has been suffering through this pandemic for almost two years now. Continuing to ignore guidelines and complain about them is just plain close-minded, ignorant, and selfish.

Many claim that testing is a hassle or hard to access. However, luckily enough, UC High provides free and easy walk-up testing every Thursday. With these easy-to-access resources that are helping the school catch asymptomatic students before they infect others, it seems ridiculous that some students do not want to test. The fact that not everyone is using these resources to their advantage is simply dumbfounding. Senior Grace Mailloux said, “Kids showing up to school having not tested for COVID-19 despite having the resources is selfish. It’s a simple preventative measure that could save lives.”

The San Diego Unified School District has been forced to repeal the vaccine mandated that they tried to enforce, due to a court ruling. According to the district’s website, “On December 20, the Superior Court ruled that we cannot implement our vaccine mandate, a decision which we plan to appeal” (sandiegounified.org). Although a mandate may not occur, it should just be considered common sense to get the shot. Given its efficacy and the lack of evidence of its adverse effects, one of the best things you can do for the public good is to get vaccinated.

Everyone should care about their fellow families, students, friends, and teachers. Keeping up with your vaccinations and masking up as much as possible is the necessary bare minimum. The sooner people begin to realize this, the sooner we can put this all behind us.