The final phase of the Cobb County School District’s reopening plan begins Thursday when high school students will be allowed to return to campus for in-person learning.
Parents of 15,285 students in grades 9 to 12 indicated they would return for face-to-face learning this semester, according to numbers previously provided by the school system. Another 15,053 high school students are expected to continue with remote learning, and parents of 5,474 students did not give a response.
Students and staff are required to wear masks in buildings and classrooms and on school buses. Teachers are also required to wear masks while teaching. Social distancing guidelines are in effect, and student desks are spaced to minimize contact. Hand sanitizing stations are in multiple locations throughout schools and district staff will do daily cleaning practices in buildings and on buses.
The school district on Nov. 13 will begin listing the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at high schools on its Cobb Learning Everywhere website. The numbers will be updated every Friday.
The district has told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that in order to protect the privacy of anyone who is sick or quarantined, it will follow state Department of Public Health recommendations to not list the number of cases by school if there are fewer than 10. The district also will not indicate whether those with the virus are students or staff members.
Cobb has phased in its classroom reopening plan, beginning Oct. 5 when it allowed kindergarten through fifth-grade students and students with special needs to return to campus. Middle school students returned to in-person classes Oct. 19.
Cobb schools will open an online portal Nov. 15-29 for parents to choose if they want their children to attend classes remotely or in-person for the spring semester, which begins Jan. 6. Additional details, such as how to log in to the portal, will be given to parents before the system goes live.
