| No Images? Click here   By Samantha Storey and Nick BaumannHuffPost's Rebecca Klein is investigating how the opioid crisis is impacting children and their education. Many are orphaned and living in foster care, their educational needs waning. Last week she wrote about a middle school in rural West Virginia, where nearly half of the students live with someone other than their parents. We asked her about the story.What was the seed for this story?There's been a lot of coverage on how the opioid crisis is impacting the medical system and pregnant mothers. We wanted to look at how the opioid crisis is impacting children who are already here, years into their education. It became clear throughout the reporting process that teachers have great insight into this issue, and we wanted to highlight their experiences.Tell us more about the series. Why look at the impact of the opioid crisis in schools?The opioid crisis is impacting jails, it's impacting hospitals, it's impacting courts, but most of all, it's impacting families. In the news, there's been a lot about parents who have lost their kids to this crisis. But we've heard less from children who have lost their parents. Looking at schools seemed like a natural way to explore this issue.What surprised you during the news gathering process?In some communities, it has become absolutely normal for most kids to live with someone other than their parents. This surprised me. In these places, the traditional family structure has been totally upended, and schools have been left to figure out what this means for education.What was most challenging?It was challenging to make sure I was reporting on communities accurately without compromising any private student information. I wanted to show the depth of the problem while still protecting the identities of children.Anything you'd like to add?I think people often think of teachers' jobs as grading papers, creating lesson plans and meeting with parents. But in communities ravaged by the opioid crisis, the job entails so much more. I think Greg Cruey, the middle school teacher in this story, is a great example of what it takes to educate kids in these places.
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