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Cobb parents to hold rally calling for school mask mandate

Masks are optional in the Cobb County School District. But many students at Pearson Middle School chose to wear them on the first day of school in Marietta on Aug. 2, 2021. (Alyssa Pointer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Credit: Alyssa Pointer

Credit: Alyssa Pointer

Masks are optional in the Cobb County School District. But many students at Pearson Middle School chose to wear them on the first day of school in Marietta on Aug. 2, 2021. (Alyssa Pointer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
By Kristal Dixon
Updated Aug 12, 2021

Parents are planning a rally today to ask the Cobb County School District to require masks for students and staff.

The event will be held at 4:30 p.m. in the parking lot of the district’s central office headquarters at 514 Glover Street in Marietta.

ExploreEarly school COVID cases have parents wary, health officials watching

The Facebook page for the event notes the parents want the district to follow guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics that recommends students and staff mask up while in school buildings.

As of Friday, the Cobb district reported 185 known cases of COVID-19 in schools. Masks are optional in Cobb schools though “strongly encouraged.”

ExploreMore stories about Cobb County public schools

The district’s website showed a cumulative count of 253 coronavirus cases recorded since July 1. School-by-school cumulative numbers reflect cases counted since the 2021-22 school year started Aug. 2

Ten metro Atlanta school districts reported 1,015 cases of the coronavirus in the first days of the new year.

About the Author

Kristal Dixon covers Cobb and DeKalb county schools for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Before joining the AJC, Dixon worked for Patch.com and the Cherokee Tribune in Canton.

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