Georgia high school students would be required to take at least one online course before graduating if a bill passed by the state Senate on Thursday becomes law.

The legislation, authored by Majority Leader Chip Rogers, R-Woodstock, and approved by a vote of 36-15, would mandate that students entering the ninth grade in the 2014-15 school year or later take at least one online course as a prerequisite for graduating.

Democrats fought the bill as an encroachment on local authority over school instruction. The bill, SB 289, now goes to the House of Representatives.

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State Election Board Vice Chair Janice Johnston speaks during an election board meeting at the Capitol in Atlanta on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (Arvin Temkar / AJC)

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Credit: Courtesy of Atlanta Public Schools