Students in Atlanta Public Schools will not be traveling out of state for field trips due to concerns about coronavirus, and trips in Georgia could be curtailed.
The school district announced Monday that the steadily increasing number of reported cases in the United States and beyond had led school officials to implement "proactive, immediate measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 ... ."
All district-sponsored field trips outside Georgia are cancelled until further notice, the announcement says. Trip organizers are directed to seek refunds or credits.
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Trips in Georgia are still allowed, but the district, which noted that the number of reported cases is rising in Fulton County and other parts of the state, said it will proceed with caution.
Associate superintendents and health officials “will review and monitor all currently scheduled in-state field trip requests for any needed cancellations,” the district said.
Each new request for trips in Georgia will be vetted “with special attention being placed on trips requiring air travel, events held in closed spaces, or events with 1,000 or more participants,” the district said. It is working with state and federal health agencies and the Georgia Department of Education to monitor the developing situation and determine whether the travel policy needs further changes.
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