Overview:
Due to severe weather threats, some Georgia schools are announcing closings for tomorrow, Friday after dangerous storms rolled into the metro area on Tuesday.
Due to severe weather threats, some Georgia schools are announcing closings for tomorrow, Friday, after dangerous storms rolled into the metro area on Tuesday.
According to reporting from Fox 5, Atlanta and northern Georgia remain under the threat of severe storms, with another round of rain, destructive winds, and the potential for tornadoes expected to conclude the work week. In contrast to Tuesday’s storm that arrived overnight, the storm on Friday is anticipated to occur from late morning through the afternoon.
As of 6:00 today, the following school districts have closed:
City of Schools of Decatur: will open with normal operations on Friday, January 12. However, all afterschool activities and the City of Decatur’s Animal Crackers and Whiz Kids programs are canceled tomorrow. College Heights ECLC and the Frasier Center 0-3 programs will close at 4 p.m. Students in grades 3-5 should charge Chromebooks overnight and bring devices and chargers back to school tomorrow. CSD will continue to monitor the weather and provide updates as needed.
Griffin-Spalding County School System will be closed tomorrow, Friday, January 12, 2024, due to the impending severe weather coming to our area. Our top priority is the safety of our students and staff. Tomorrow’s weather prediction for our area is at a risk level 3, which is an enhanced risk. All activities are considered canceled, this includes athletic events that were to take place, locally or out of town. No employee or student will need to report to a GSCS facility.
The decision to cancel all school system operations is informed by several factors, including student transportation, operations & logistics, and staffing. Additionally, we are mindful of our community’s sensitivity to severe weather, particularly considering last year’s tornado event. Again, all GSCS operations are closed for tomorrow, Friday, January 12, 2024. We expect to return to normal operations on Tuesday, January 16th. If you have not already, please download the free GSCS app (via the Apple store or Google Play store) to stay up to date with information from the school system and your student’s school(s). Thank you, and please be weather-aware during this time.
Henry County Schools: Based on the latest information from the National Weather Service and Henry County EMA regarding the likelihood for severe weather tomorrow between noon and 6 p.m. Henry County Schools will be closed Friday, Jan. 12. Facilities and Maintenance staff should report at their regularly scheduled time due to their essential role in storm preparation. All other employees should not report to work. All school-related activities are canceled on Friday, and a decision will be made by Friday evening regarding weekend activities.
Meriwether County Schools: Due to the threat of inclement weather from the approaching storm front, all Meriwether County Schools will transition to remote learning on Friday January 12, 2024. The approaching storm front is predicted to produce severe storms and damaging winds on Friday, January 12, 2024. Saturated soil combined with high winds has the potential for downed trees and power lines resulting in hazardous road conditions and power outages. High winds are predicted to begin by 7 AM on Friday, January 12, 2024. The school system will continue to monitor this inclement weather situation and provide further updates if required. Again, all Meriwether County Schools will transition to remote learning on Friday, January 12, 2024. Thank you for your support and patience as we assure the safety and health of students.
Troup County Schools: Unfortunately, for the second time this week, we are informing you that all Troup County Schools will be closed on Friday, January 12, 2024, due to a severe weather threat for our area. This time, the worst weather is expected during hours between 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. but may continue throughout the evening. All after-school activities and athletics will be canceled for Friday. Any Saturday activities will continue as scheduled. This decision is based on the forecasted high winds and the risk of tornados. All 240-day employees should report to work as normal.
Clayton County Public Schools: will be closed on Friday due to inclement weather. All students in grades PreK-12 and all staff will remain home. All afterschool programs and scheduled athletics events have been canceled. The district is providing instructional materials for all grade levels to support independent at-home learning.
DeKalb County Schools: schools will remain open on Friday, January 12th, operating on regular schedules. However, for everyone’s safety, all school-based, district-wide, extracurricular, and athletic activities scheduled for Friday are CANCELED, including elementary after-school programs. We’re closely monitoring the severe weather forecast for the metro Atlanta area.
Coweta County Schools: Due to the continuing possibility of severe weather in our area tomorrow between noon and 6 p.m., all Coweta County Schools will be closed on Friday, January 12. Facilities and maintenance staff should report at their regularly scheduled time due to their essential role in storm preparation. All other employees should not report to work. All after-school and other school-related activities are canceled on Friday.
Jasper County Schools: will release two hours early on January 12, 2024, due to the severe weather forecast for the Jasper County area projected for later in the afternoon and early evening hours. Please see below for the exact times of release for individual schools: Jasper County Preschool/Jasper County Primary School/Washington Park Elementary School will begin release at 12:30 pm. Jasper County Middle School/Jasper County High School will begin release at 1:00 PM.
Cobb County Schools: is monitoring Friday’s severe weather threat, but believe it will not be impacting operations. Teaching and learning will continue as normal on Friday. The district continues to monitor the changes to the weather forecast and will update plans as needed.
Education in Atlanta will continue to monitor the weather. Please check back for updates.