Return to school plan released for Apalachee High School families following mass shooting

ATLANTA — Apalachee High School will begin the process of reopening the school after a student went in with a rifle and opened fire, killing two teachers and two students.

The district confirmed to Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco that the school will begin to reopen gradually, starting Sept. 24.

“We are working with our community, teachers, parents, and experts to ensure we have the right systems and resources in place,” Barrow County Schools Superintendent Dr. Dallas LeDuff said.

LeDuff sent a letter to families Friday evening.

He said the plan will include relocating some of the classrooms. Although, the district is still working to finalize where the district will move those classrooms.

“In other situations, students have never returned to those campuses,” Lisa Morgan said.

Morgan represents teachers and staff through the Georgia Association of Educators.

She told Francisco that considering the trauma of returning to ground zero is critical.

She said the mental health aspect of the return plan is, perhaps, one of the most important.

“I truly believe this is a time to take a step back and focus on the trauma students and educators have experienced and focus on healing,” Morgan said.

RELATED STORIES:

• Atlanta Falcons invite Apalachee High School football team to practice
• Apalachee school shooting: Principal shares heartfelt message to students, ‘You are loved’
• Apalachee school shooting: 14-year-old soccer player hit by bullet fragments
• Apalachee school shooting: Gunman also had knife, rode bus to school day of massacre

She said security improvements should be another layer of the plan.

The Barrow County Schools website said Friday that leaders are discussing possible additional layers of prevention and security with input from local, state, and federal law enforcement.

The district’s website said students can expect to see more police patrols when they return to campus and visitations may be limited.

“We have to look beyond what we can do within the confines of the school,” Morgan said.

She pointed out the detail investigators released Friday that the suspected shooter rode the bus to school the day of the attack.

“I never considered the bus,” Morgan said.

His gun was hidden in his backpack, and there are no metal detectors at AHS, according to investigators.

The district’s website lists security measures the school has in place currently.

That includes resource officers, digital door locks, and emergency buttons on staff badges.

RELATED NEWS:

Atlanta Falcons invite Apalachee High School football team to practice

©2024 Cox Media Group