Woodland school creates bubble for PASS students

WOODLAND — Woodland High School’s Positive Academic Support System, better known as PASS, looked to the NBA for pointers during the pandemic. The PASS program connects first-year freshman students with staff who help guide them. The NBA has functioned during the pandemic by creating a “bubble” on the Disney theme park in Florida to prevent the spread of COVID-19 while still allowing the season to continue. “Many students told us that they simply couldn’t focus when they tried to learn from home with distractions everywhere,” said Stacy Gould, the PASS program coordinator. Similarly, the PASS team has separated groups of students to allow for contact tracing. “We bring students in small groups of around six students to the school where they remain in their cohort or ‘bubble’ for the entire day, returning home with the same students and not interacting with other students from other bubbles,” Principal Phillip Pearson said. “Students wear masks the entire day except when eating, and even their meals are brought to them at their study area.” Families with students interested in participating in the PASS Program can reach out to Pearson at ppearson@woodlandschools.org, or call the Woodland High School main office at 360-841-2800.