sparked rage. at school board meetings. let the parents make the decisions. let the kids breathe. reporter: as classrooms returned cautiously to in-person learning. i would rather wear it because i don t want to get covid. reporter: our variablies expanded to include new terms. breakthrough cases. boosters. and by year s end, omicron. as the pandemic raged, so did nature s fury. swears huddled under all the blankets that we have. reporter: in february, a deadly ice storm paralyzed texas, leaving millions without power. wildfires continued to ravage the west with hurricane ida carving a path of destruction that stretched from louisiana to new york. and this month, more than a hundred were killed by a series of rare december tornadoes in kentucky and surrounding states.
reporter: it was a dramatic start to a year still dominated by covid. we learned this morning that the pandemic has now taken 400,000 lives in the u.s. reporter: as the country emerged from a deadly winter, vaccines became more available, first to the most vulnerable. then to all adults. and eventually to most kids. despite the welcome shot in the arm, more americans died from covid this year than last as the more contagious delta variant surged and hospitals filled again treating mostly unvaccinated patients. now we are treating patients in the hallways. reporter: mask mandates sparked rage. at school board meetings. let the parents make the decisions. let the kids breathe. reporter: as classrooms cautiously returned to in-person learning. i would rather wear it because i don t want to get covid. reporter: our vocabularies expanded to include new terms
then to all adults, and eventually to most kids. how bad was it? not bad at all. reporter: despite the welcomed shot in the arm, more americans died from covid this year than last when the more contagious delta variant surged and hospitals filled again treating mostly unvaccinated patients. now we are treating patients in the hallways. reporter: mask mandates sparked rage. at school board meetings. let the parents make the decisions. let the kids breathe. reporter: as classrooms cautiously returned to in-person learning. i d rather wear it because i don t want to get covid. reporter: in a way, all of us were students this year as our vocabularies expanded to include new terms, breakthrough cases, boosters, and by year s end, omicron. as the pandemic raged, so did nature s fury. we re huddled under all the
Medford School District’s superintendent has said he’d like to pursue an optional masking policy no later than March 31, but the overwhelming message from the school board and the public is clear . .
senate. donald john trump, former president of the united states is not guilty. reporter: it was a dramatic start to a year still dominated by covid. we learned this morning that the pandemic has now taken 400,000 lives in the u.s. reporter: as the country emerged from a deadly winter, vaccines became more available, first in the most vulnerable, then to all adults, and eventually to most kids. how bad was it? not bad at all. reporter: more americans died from covid this year than last as the more contagious delta variant surged and hospitals filled again, treating mostly unvaccinated patients. now we are treating patients in the hallways. reporter: mask mandates sparked rage. unmask our children! reporter: at school board meetings. let the parents make the decisions. let the kids breathe. reporter: as classrooms cautiously returned to in-person learning.