Many metro Atlanta schools to remain closed Thursday
Despite clear skies Wednesday and slightly warmer temperatures, some metro Atlanta school districts do not believe road conditions are good enough to reopen their buildings for classes Thursday.
DeKalb County school district officials said icy conditions in many parts of the region make it difficult for some employees to travel to school buildings, so they are planning a third consecutive day of asynchronous independent learning. The district said all employees should report to work on Thursday if conditions allow for safe travel.
Henry County’s school system cited information from local emergency management officials regarding persistent hazardous road conditions for its decision to remain closed Thursday. Coweta County’s school system said it will be closed Thursday due to hazardous roadways throughout the county. Fayette County said it plans to have a digital learning day.
Some school districts are planning a return to in-person learning. Cobb County is operating under normal schedules, the state’s second-largest school district said Wednesday afternoon. Forsyth County will return to in-person learning Thursday. Some North Georgia school districts, including Dade and Murray, plan to resume classes Thursday. Fulton County Schools south of I-20 will operate on a two-hour delay. Schools north of I-20 will return to normal operations.
Several universities are returning to classes on campus. The University of Georgia will delay opening Thursday until 10 a.m. The first in-person class for students will begin at 11:10 a.m. Oglethorpe University is also resuming normal operations Thursday.
The Atlanta University Center Consortium — which consists of Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine and Spelman College — will resume normal operations with a 10 a.m. delayed start on Thursday. Classes before 10 a.m. will be held virtually.
Here’s a list of some of the public school districts, colleges and universities that will be closed Thursday:
Clayton County
Coweta County
City Schools of Decatur
DeKalb County
Emory University
Fayette County
Georgia Gwinnett College
Georgia Piedmont Technical College
Griffin-Spalding
Gwinnett County
Henry County
Newton County
Rockdale County
About the Authors
Eric Stirgus joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2001. He is the newsroom's education editor. Born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., Eric is active in the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists and the Education Writers Association and enjoys mentoring aspiring journalists.
