CRAVEN COUNTY, N.C. -- Students have returned to school following the holidays, but are still playing catch up after missing up to 26 days of school to Hurricane Florence.

• In Craven County, schools opened on different dates, so the district is adapting yearly schedules on a school by school basis.
• The state is giving schools the option to extend the school year as needed.
• Havelock Middle School hopes EOG testing continues as normal to allow the school to evaluate students' learning needs.

In Craven County, schools opened one by one on different dates, so the district is adapting yearly schedules on a school by school basis.

The state is giving schools the option to extend the school year as needed.

Havelock Middle School administration is on board with the idea of an extension following the disaster, and thinks students would be, too.

"It's made them see the real value in education, because going through this process, they've realized that education is an opportunity," said Havelock Middle School Principal William Byland. "That's something that we tell them every day but through the storm they were able to see the importance of school."

Havelock Middle School administration hopes end of grade testing continues as normal to allow the school to evaluate students' learning needs, but counts on the state allowing them to give the tests later than usual.