Back 2 School: Here are the 12 school districts returning to class Thursday

Thursday will be another busy day for parents and students as 11 more districts head back to the classroom.

Atlanta Public Schools, Chattooga County, Coweta County, Floyd County, Forsyth County, Gilmer County. Gordon County, Gwinnett County, Lumpkin County, Rockdale County Schools, Rome City Schools and Towns County all return.

Here is what parents and students in the districts need to know about.

Atlanta Public Schools

As part of the district’s safety protocols, Atlanta Public Schools will require masks in the classrooms and will continue weekly surveillance testing.

The district says the testing is available to every child and every employee. This rapid test detects the presence of COVID-19 even in individuals who may be asymptomatic.

[SPECIAL SECTION: Channel 2′s complete guide for back to school 2021 in north Georgia]

Masks will be required during the school day and indoor after-school activities. Clear masks will be provided and used for serving students in special populations.

For parents who aren’t comfortable with sending children to school, there’s still a virtual option with separate APS teachers.

To identify any pandemic learning gaps, every child in APS will complete an assessment.

“We’re also doing this for behavioral and mental health services, universally meaning across all grade levels and across the district so that we have a sense of where they’re starting out, and we’ll progress, monitor that and provide interventions,” Superintendent Dr. Lisa Herring said.

APS will also be dedicating 30 minutes a day to catching up on reading, math or whatever subject that may require additional time from the student.

The school bell schedule has been changed. Elementary students will attend from 7:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.; middle schools 9:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.; and high schools from 8:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.

APS superintendent says district is excited to welcome students back to the classroom Dr. Lisa Herring said the district will welcome back students who will need to be masked, and they will have a layered safety plan.

Coweta County

Students in Coweta County who have been dealing with the double blow of a pandemic and a devastating tornado head back to school Thursday.

An EF-4 tornado ripped through Newnan in March, destroying or damaging dozens of homes and some schools as well.

Coweta County Superintendent Dr. Evan Horton said that as much as they wanted to get in to repair damage at schools right after the storm, his first priority was making sure everyone was OK.

“Seeing that happen to a place that you love and to people that you care about...We’re going to fix the building and get those repaired, but people are the heart of everything,” Horton said.

BACK 2 SCHOOL

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Newnan High School sustained the most damage in the storm. Students will be back at school in person, but they will be using temporary classrooms until buildings can be repaired.

On the pandemic side, the school system has a set of COVID-19 protocols in place.

Coweta County officials says masks are optional, but they strongly encourages students and staff to follow CDC guidance to “wear a mask Indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial and high transmission” of COVID-19. Masks will be required on school buses.

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and reduce the potential risk of exposure, the district recommends that all employees and families should check their temperature at home before arriving to school.

A full list of COVID-19 protocols can be found here.

Groups continue to gather in Newnan to help clear tornado damaged homes

Floyd County

Floyd County Schools will return to pre-pandemic school operations for the 2021-22 school year. At this time, the district will not require masks but students and staff can choose to wear them.

Parents and visitors will not be allowed in the schools to start the year. Floyd County Schools say it will re-evaluate that policy after Labor Day.

COVID-19 vaccinations are not required for employees or students but are encouraged and recommended. Students or staff who test positive for COVID-19 will continue to follow Department of Public Health guidelines, which require them to stay home for 10 days since symptoms first appeared and are fever-free.

Schools will return to their normal operating procedures for lunchtime and class bell schedules.

Forsyth County

Forsyth County is the state’s sixth largest district and will have over 51,500 students this year. East Forsyth High School and Hendricks Middle School are opening this year.

The school district gave families a choice between face-to-face and virtual this year. About 95% of families selected face-to-face. Families will be allowed to switch between semesters.

As of Aug. 3, masks continue to be optional for all students and staff this school year.

The following strategies will be in place for all elementary schools through at least Labor Day: avoid large group settings, if possible, particularly in the cafeteria and at recess; limit student movement in the building; virtual curriculum nights, staff meetings, and PTA/O events; no visitors or field trips; assigned seating in classrooms and buses.

Gordon County

During the first day of school, only parents of pre-K and kindergarten students will be allowed to walk their students to their class.

Gordon County Schools says masks are not required but encouraged in classrooms along with social distancing. Seating charts will be in place as an extra COVID-19 protocol.

The district says anyone who experiences COVID-19 symptoms should remain home and get tested.

Gwinnett County (Grades K-1, 6, 9 with digital learning)

Most of Gwinnett County Public Schools’ nearly 180,000 students will be attending school in-person; however, families of approximately 3,400 students selected for their children to remain digital this year.

GCPS will have a staggered back-to-school plan:

• Aug. 4 – Grades K, 1, 6, 9, and students receiving Special Education services in a small-group setting begin in-person classes
• Aug. 5 – Grades 2, 3, 7, and 10 begin in-person classes
• Aug. 9 – Grades 4, 5, 8, 11, and 12 begin in-person classes

The digital learning schedule may be different from the in-person schedule.

The state’s largest school district announced that masks will be required for all students and staff. Schools will plan for appropriate mask breaks.

Buses will operate at maximum capacity as usual. Physical distancing will not be possible on school buses.

As Gwinnett students return this week, they will have a new leader for the first time in 25 years. Calvin Watts takes over as the district’s superintendent. Watts replaces J. Alvin Wilbanks.

Lumpkin County

Face masks will not be required but made available for all students upon request. Lumpkin County Schools says physical distancing will be in place when possible.

The school district also will carry over the same COVID-19 contact tracing plan from last school. Students 12 and older are eligible for free COVID-19 vaccinations through the local health department.

Rockdale County

Rockdale County Public Schools is returning to in-person, five-days-a-week learning for students. Families were able to apply for the virtual learning option for 2021-2022.

Rockdale superintendent says the district will maintaining its indoor and bus mask requirements for all staff and students.

When possible, classrooms will be configured for social distancing with all students facing the same direction. Clear desk barriers may be used in some classrooms.

Students will pick up their meals in the cafeteria and may eat in the cafeteria. Student meal protocols will be addressed by each school. Masks must be worn by all in the cafeteria except when eating or drinking.

A full list of COVID-19 protocols can be found on the RCPS website here.

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