While the board feels its mission is to give students the best education possible and push them to do their best, Schoenfeldt is saying that because of the murder-suicide at Marysville-Pilchuck High School Oct. 24 it is best to ease off some.

“We need to get back into the mode of learning,” an obviously frustrated board member Chris Nation said Jan. 5. “It’s hard to give a pass.”

But Schoenfeldt explained that with her experience in other school shootings it is going to take some time for not just the school, but the entire community, to recover.

She passed out a chart at the work session that shows Marysville in a state of disillusionment right now. It will stay there until the anniversary of the tragedy next year. Then, the community will work through the grief, come to terms with it, and reconstruct with a new beginning.

Until then, students and staff at M-P will be dealing with panic and anger. More support staff and training is needed. Schoenfeldt passed out a schedule for trainings and a budget for support staff.

Trainings include support groups, mental health, crisis intervention, social media, trauma, post traumatic stress and more.

The budget, totaling almost $1.39 million, includes money for counselors, support services and training. It also includes funds for a crisis consultant, tutor, suicide awareness training and even $43,200 for comfort dogs.

Schoenfeldt also broke down just how much support different people may need.

For example, the 100 students and staff who were in the immediate area and witnessed the shooting likely will need mental health support, her handout reads. Their long-term needs also could include academic support and family counseling. She also lists the resources for those needs.

The other 1,200 high school students and staff who either feared for their lives and either locked down or fled over fences may have those same needs or others.

Schoenfeldt’s information also is a reminder of how far-reaching the tragedy is within the district itself.

It looks at the needs of students and faculty at Totem Middle School, whose graduates go to M-P. It also looks at students at Marysville Getchell and Heritage high schools, many of whom knew the victims. Also mentioned are the victims’ siblings and other family members, along with all of the families of all of the students at M-P who didn’t know initially if their kids were among the victims or not.

Schoenfeldt said grades are likely to drop, because they have at every other school that has had a shooting. It can actually take up to five years for scores to return to normal, she added.

She said that can be hard on students because with colleges, “Nobody cuts any slack for tragedy for graduates.”

She explained her job is three-fold: to help the community recover; to help prevent another tragedy; and to educate the community on what to expect.

Schoenfeldt said it was hard for many students and staff to come back to school after the time off for winter break. She warned there could be increased absenteeism, retirements and turnover of teachers, creating a human resources challenge for the district. She said what to do with the cafeteria and a memorial will weigh heavy on the community. M-P could lose enrollment.

“It can feel out of control,” Schoenfeldt said.

Superintendent Becky Berg keeps talking about a new normal. The board discussed how teachers need to be taught tips on how to help students academically with their new mind-set.

“We need to help the teachers and get everybody refocused,” Nation said.

Berg said their new jobs are challenging.

“We’re part social worker, part mental health therapist,” she said. “We’re in the middle. We can’t go back to normal.”