Tallulah Falls School students will return to on-campus learning on Monday. Students have been learning online since returning for the spring semester on January 4.
“By delaying the return to in-person classes until January 11, we have created a buffer for any students and staff that may have been exposed to the virus during the [winter] break,” said Assistant Head of School David Chester.
Stephens County is also resuming in-person instruction next week, but several other area school systems are sticking with virtual learning for the time being.
Students in Gainesville, Banks, Hall, Hart, Rabun, and White counties will continue online learning through at least January 15. They’re currently scheduled to return to school for in-class instruction on January 19 after the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday.
Athens-Clarke County announced this week it’s postponing its scheduled return to in-person instruction. Students were scheduled to return on January 19, but Superintendent Dr. Xernona Thomas says “due to health and safety concerns,” school administrators decided to delay beyond that date. She did not specify for how long.
“As you are likely aware, Athens-Clarke County and the surrounding region are experiencing record levels of COVID cases,” Thomas wrote in a letter to parents this week. “Our local medical facilities face a strain in their ability to treat COVID patients and other health situations that normally arise.”
The severe strain on medical facilities has been a factor in several school districts’ decisions to switch students to online learning.
Habersham County public school students are scheduled to return to the classroom on January 25.
