On a hot afternoon in June, I downloaded a free mental health app called Woebot. I was feeling somewhat worn out and anxious from too many hours reading news about the double pandemic of Covid-19 and systemic racism, and the hubris of too quickly reopening the country. Woebot claimed it could help. "I'm an emotional assistant," Woebot explained, after asking about my mood, which was sluggish and pessimistic. "I'm like a wise little person you can consult with during difficult times, and not so difficult times."

Students and parents across the state said they struggled with remote learning, but are fearful to return to school buildings amid the coronavirus pandemic, placing the stress of uncertainty upon families as fall approaches. "I think it is cruel and mean to think that students should be in a room at their seat without any physical touch for hours," said Jay'dha Rackard, 12, who attends Helen Davis Leadership Academy. Her mother, Janina Rackard, said she decided to keep her daughter home for remote learning this school year, "I feel like our children are being treated like Petri dishes." School shutdowns and remote learning models from the spring took a toll on students and parents, families said during a Thursday virtual press conference hosted by the Massachusetts Education Justice Alliance. "Remote learning probably came at the worst possible time in my life," said Chelsea High School senior Victoria Stutto. She said her father died shortly after school was shut down.