CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Students and teachers across North Carolina are back in school after a rollercoaster of a year in 2020.

What You Need To Know

  • Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are back in person for the 2021 school year

  • The Harris' in Charlotte are a family of teachers in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) system

  • The Harris' say the biggest challenge for the summer was waiting on CMS to make a decision on the district mask policy as the delta variant of COVID-19 continues to spread

In Charlotte, the Harris family is full of teachers.

Dr. Christopher Harris, his wife, Jade Harris, and their daughter, Caitlin Harris, all teach at different schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools system.

The Harris' were initially worried about heading back to the classroom in February, before vaccines were readily available. Jade Harris says now that the family is fully vaccinated, and with a district-wide mask mandate, she feels more comfortable going back to school.

“The stress of not knowing what to expect in a blended classroom, I think that has lessened,” she said.

The family still has concerns about the delta variant and is now worried they will be forced back to virtual learning. Jade Harris says after more than a year in front of a computer, they now how to tackle working from home.

“We know the procedures that we’re going to do to keep ourselves safe to be able to come back home to our families, and also to help keep the kids safe,” she said.

The family is happy to be heading into a classroom because they no longer have to fight over space in the house to create their virtual classrooms. They say being home together had some benefits when it came to tackling new technology.

“Even during the class times, there would be certain times my mom was like ‘Caitlin, I don’t understand what’s going on, can you come help me with this?’ So, luckily, I would be in my planning period, so that I could stop and help my mom,” she said.

The Harris' finished out the 2020 school year in person with students, and say that small amount of face-to-face time helped bring back a connection lost through the computer screen.

“They can get things on their level when they can get the personal contact,” Christopher Harris said. “If they’re falling short on something, I can see that, I can be able to interact with them.”

CMS returns to school on Wednesday, August 25. If you would like to share your back to school photos with us, click here.