While English teacher Mr. Dylan Ross was scootering down National Boulevard near Midvale Avenue on Oct. 7,  he lost his balance and fell off his scooter, causing a severe injury to his collarbone. 

He returned to Shalhevet on Dec. 9 after two months of recovery, including surgery. 

“I definitely recall when I went to signal to the traffic behind me that I was trying to move in,” said Mr. Ross in an interview with the Boiling Point before his return to school. “I could feel the balance losing.”

He said it was good to be back at school.

“The first day back was great – I got a really warm welcome,” said Mr. Ross a few weeks later. “It was nice to see all of my students, nice to see all of my colleagues… It made me really miss the school environment.”

Students said they were pleased as well. 

 “It was nice to see Mr. Ross come back,” said freshman Adam Sandler. 

Mr. Ross said his accident happened at around 9:30 p.m. while he was riding his electric scooter. He said he lost his balance and fell into oncoming traffic on National Boulevard while trying to merge lanes. 

He said he then hurriedly moved to the curb so as to not get hurt by the cars coming towards him. 

“I didn’t want to hold up traffic so I got out of the way really quickly,” he added.

After a trip to the UCLA emergency room, it was clear from multiple X-rays that his collarbone had been shattered, and with some input from doctors, he decided it was best to take a leave from school and continue his recovery at home. 

During his leave, Mr. Ross had surgery on his collarbone and frequent physical therapy.

He stayed active in grading assignments and creating lesson plans, but also had various substitutes filling in for him, though responding to messages was difficult for him because he could not sit at his computer comfortably.

“Being able to sit at a computer, or even just lie down, was a big challenge for me,” said Mr. Ross.

As his recovery progressed, he was able to start doing things that benefited his mental health, including keeping active and communicating with friends and family. 

Meanwhile, back at school, General Studies Principal Mr. Daniel Weslow tried to find coverage for Mr. Ross’s three freshman classes and two senior classes.

Mr. Weslow said the other members of the English department and also other teachers  reached out to ask what they could do to help in terms of subbing or contribute to lesson plans. But it was hard to find a replacement within Shalhevet. 

“Unfortunately all of our English teachers, their classes conflicted,” Mr. Weslow said. 

Eventually, Mr. Weslow filled the slot himself. He said that because he had taught ninth grade English previously at Shalhevet, he was able to use materials and resources he already knew. He said he enjoyed the experience.

“I love it,” said Mr. Weslow. “The more opportunities I can have connecting with students, both in the halls, in my office, in the classroom. It’s really special and something I enjoy.” 

When Mr. Ross returned, he made minor adjustments to his classrooms, including not passing out many papers so he wouldn’t have to maneuver around the chairs, tables and backpacks around the classroom, which got tricky, he said. 

He could tell being back at work helped.

“I went from kind of spending the majority of the day, kind of, immobile, not moving around much, just trying to heal, to suddenly running from class to class,” said Mr. Ross. 

Now, he keeps up with his physical therapy appointments and checks in with his doctor when his pain intensifies, he said. He makes sure to check his physical limits before lifting or moving heavy objects so as not to cause any further injury. 

He also was grateful to a group of Shalhevet parents who delivered some food for him.

“The Shalhevet Parent Association was so kind, and they were able to start a little bit of a meal train for me,” Mr. Ross said. “It was very, very touching. I had never really experienced something like that before, and it made me miss Shalhevet even more.”

A major concern Mr. Ross had while absent was whether he still held a bond with his students, especially since the injury had happened so early in the school year.

“I think one of my major concerns is, you know, coming back, am I starting from square one?” Mr. Ross asked. “Are we all going to have to get to know each other again?” 

Almost two months later, he said this week that it hadn’t been bad after all.

“There were definitely moments where I did have to get to know each of the students over again,” Mr. Ross said Thursday. “It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, it wasn’t anything I was afraid of.”