Metro Atlanta school districts plan for student walkouts

Students across the metro area -- from Alpharetta to Atlanta, Douglasville to Decatur, and Sandy Springs to Snellville -- plan to walk out of school March 14 to protest gun violence.

Walkouts are being planned at more than two dozen area middle schools, high schools, and universities as part of a national movement organized after last week's school shooting in Florida that killed 17.

Atlanta and Gwinnett school districts want students to work with their principals to develop a plan before holding a demonstration. DeKalb Superintendent Steve Green told parents in a letter the district will allow students “to peacefully protest” but cautioned that the district won’t tolerate disruptive or unsafe behavior: “It can be a teachable moment where students can demonstrate their First Amendment right to be heard, knowing there are natural consequences to civil disobedience.”