Spartan Newsroom (https://news.jrn.msu.edu/author/stodda85/)
Madison Stoddard is a journalism major with a minor in sports journalism at Michigan State University. Stoddard has a deep interest in sports reporting as she was an athlete herself. She hopes to become a sports sideline reporter for ESPN someday.
GRAND LEDGE – Staggered schedules, prohibiting parent visitors, regimented recesses, and outdoor tent lunches are among the ways the Grand Ledge Public Schools are managing the return to in-person schooling this spring.
GRAND LEDGE- A project to build a new roundabout, approved by voters over two years ago, might be finally getting under way. The roundabout project, which is part of Grand Ledge Public Schools’ 22-acre athletic field restructuring, was designed to help with the flow of traffic from the high school, middle school and the new athletic fields that are under development by providing access to and from M-43. The roundabout project will be placed on M-43 between Jenne St. and the Brookside drive neighborhood.
22 Acres is used as an athletic practice field for sports like soccer, football and lacrosse. There is no driveway from M-43 that allows access to this property. Madison StoddardThe current 22-acres field that the new access road will be placed on.
GRAND LEDGE – “No matter what” is this year’s theme for the Grand Ledge girls varsity basketball team.
The team has gone through its ups and downs when awaiting the status of its season early on. Before the announcement made by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Feb. 8 in regards to the return of winter sports, the team didn’t know if they were going to have a 2021 season.
The initial season started on track with tryouts in early November. Not too long after the week of tryouts, on Nov. 18, there was an announcement of a partial pause of all high school sports until Dec.
GRAND LEDGE – Parents, teachers, students, and staff have been waiting for this moment. After months of deliberation, the Grand Ledge Public Schools are physically open for the first time this year on March 1.
Since Sept. 8, 2020, all Grand Ledge students have been attending classes virtually Monday through Friday. There is an approximate of about 2,200 to 2,500 students that started in-person learning on March 1. However, about 50% of families in the district have decided to remain virtual through the academic year.
GRAND LEDGE – Cugino’s is a family run Italian restaurant established in 2001 owned by cousins Mark Naccarato and Patrick DeLuca. Cugino’s is still surviving while making accommodations according to the pandemic. These COVID-19 guidelines include daily temperature checks, COVID-19 questionnaire, face masks, and routinely sanitation.
GRAND LEDGE – The continuing COVID-19 pandemic led to a season like no other for the Grand Ledge varsity football team. Grand Ledge Public School District classes have been held remotely since the start of the year in August. Sports, on the other hand, have been allowed to play with some accommodations. Although the Grand Ledge football season was delayed, the season still gave them enough time to play each game that was scheduled.
Head coach Joe Brya had to make it work even with the virus. The restrictions that were set in place to keep the team safe included temperatures readings, social distancing, facial coverings for all, and sanitation for both the players and equipment.
Brya said these precautions allowed the team to do well – the team finished 5-3, 2-2 in its conference – and avoid the coronavirus.
The students did their due diligence by wearing masks and sanitizing before touching equipment and never got infected or had to get tested because of exposure.