COVID-19 outbreak shutters Georgia school where photos showed students without masks

Students at a metro-Atlanta high school will start the week with distance learning after six students and three staff members tested positive for the coronavirus.

North Paulding High School will hold classes online Monday and Tuesday so that the school can be “thoroughly cleaned and disinfected,” Paulding County Schools Superintendent Dr. Brian Otott said in a letter to parents Sunday, according to WSBTV. The decision comes just a week after students returned to class for in-person learning.

The school, located in Dallas, Georgia, was thrust into the national spotlight early last week after sophomore Hanna Watters posted a photo and video showing crowded hallways and students without face masks, McClatchy News previously reported. The images drew fierce criticism amid rising COVID-19 cases county- and statewide.

In Sunday’s letter, Otott said there’s a possibility the number of positive cases at the school could rise from the current nine, as there are still pending tests.

“The district will consult with the Department of Public Health to assess the environment and determine if there are any additional close contacts for confirmed cases who have not already been notified,” the superintendent wrote, WSB-TV reported.

The now-viral photos showing North Paulding students during afternoon dismissal offered a glimpse into schools’ efforts to reopen safely amid the pandemic. Watters, 15, initially faced a five-day, out-of-school suspension for posting the pictures, but the punishment was rescinded after public outcry, according to McClatchy News.

Watters, who was set to return to school on Monday, told CNN she’s been the target of threats since then.

“I feel like a lot of teachers have my back because they know how dangerous it is going to school,” she told the outlet. “But I know that a lot of the kids that I go to school with, I’ve already gotten backlash for it, threats and things like that.”

Some of the messages included “We’re going to jump every girl named Hannah in the 10th grade,” and “I know where this girl lives,” CNN reported.

“I know I’m doing the right thing and it’s not going to stop me from continuing doing it,” Watters added. “But it is concerning, especially since it’s a lot of the people I go to school with, people I’ve known for years now, that are threatening me.”

In a tweet, the teen also addressed rumors that she had not worn a mask at school, saying the only time she took hers off was to eat lunch.

McClatchy News contacted the Paulding County School District for comment and is awaiting response.

As of Monday, the county had confirmed more than 1,600 coronavirus cases and 22 deaths, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health. Statewide, over 216,000 Georgians have been infected with the virus and nearly 4,200 have died.

Paulding County Schools officials said they will inform parents Tuesday night if distance learning will continue or if students will return for in-person classes.

Students at Georgia school snapped photos of maskless peers. Now, they face expulsion