What Officials And Educators Learned Moving Past 2020 Bay City News Service FacebookTwitterEmail But there was a lot to learn. And reasons for hope. There's a new administration on its way to Washington D.C. and Americans are already being vaccinated against COVID-19. Stimulus checks are landing in bank accounts (even if many argue they're too small). Fewer cars are on the highway and we've learned some things formerly burdensome, like medical appointments, can reliably happen from home. Dr. John Swartzberg, a professor at UC Berkeley School of Public Health, said despite the pandemic's toll, there are reasons to believe 2020 may have helped pave a smoother road to the future.