The day after a teacher who reportedly had mental health issues was accused of barricading himself in a classroom with a gun and firing a shot, Dalton school district officials sought to ease student concerns and reassure the public that they work to ensure all teachers are medically cleared to be in the classroom.
No one was hurt in the Wednesday incident at Dalton High, but the situation prompted school officials to cancel classes Thursday.
School will reopen Friday, with additional police, counselors and faith-based leaders on hand to protect and comfort students and faculty.
Twice since March 2016, Dalton police responded to calls about the teacher, Jesse Randal Davidson, 53. Dalton school officials said they were aware of those incidents.
Read what school officials did after two previous events involving the police and Davidson at MyAJC.com.
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The AJC's Eric Stirgus keeps you updated on the latest happenings in higher education affecting metro Atlanta and Georgia. You'll find more on myAJC.com, including these stories:
- Change to Georgia senate bill raises safety concerns
- Kennesaw State's campus speech zones unconstitutional, lawsuit says
- Georgia House committee approves HOPE scholarship eligibility change
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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.
Ty Tagami is a staff writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Since joining the newspaper in 2002, he has written about everything from hurricanes to homelessness. He has deep experience covering local government and education, and can often be found under the Gold Dome when lawmakers meet or in a school somewhere in the state.
