On Monday, thousands of children in the counties around the metro Atlanta area will return to class. Students from Cobb, Rockdale, Cherokee, Fannin, Lumpkin, Madison, Morgan, Newton, and Paulding counties as well as the Atlanta Public Schools are included in this.
Dianna Paxton, a parent with the APS, stated, “We’re going into with just thoughts of everything that’s going on… everything that happened last year, everything that’s transpired since COVID.”
In addition to purchasing those last-minute items on their shopping lists for school supplies, Paxton told FOX 5 that she is also considering how safety will be this year given the pandemic-era regulations and the shootings that have occurred on schools across the country.
Even just imagining what might occur on the first day of school gives her anxiety, she acknowledged.
There are several safeguards in place, according to Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Lisa Herring, and they want parents to feel confident sending their children back.
She said, “We will be talking to the community this year on a clear backpack policy and our high schools have medal detectors.”
A clear backpack rule is anticipated to take effect in Clayton County later in the academic year. Cobb County district officials have established a new job for an assistant superintendent of safety initiatives.
The COVID-19 advice is largely unchanged from last year in local school systems. State law forbids school districts from requiring children to wear masks, so they are still a choice. Paxton stated that she is okay with letting her son make the choice.
“They do test them twice a week, which we believe is acceptable. I believe they will be okay if he approves “She spoke.
