The final bell

The hallway clock in Ekalaka Elementary is trapped at 9:46. Made in Minneapolis, Minnesota by the Miller Program Clock Company, it is self-winding and powered by two 1.5 volt dry cells, each roughly the size of a soda can. The upper level of the school is warm and getting warmer as sunlight soaks the empty rooms. Downstairs, the basement is cool and surprisingly bright along the windows. Voices echo.

Classrooms seem stretched without desks and chairs. Many are completely barren. One room has a box of ethernet cables and routers, another has a wheeled scaffolding. Upstairs, the original second...