Back to school season is right around the corner for many, and others have already begun in some states. Students in a local high school in Georgia are being threatened with suspension for posting on social media how the school was lacking strict COVID-19 protocols promised before reopening.
What We Know:
- According to a report from CBS46, students at Paulding High School have and will face consequences for exposing the school’s lack of preventative COVID-19 safety guidelines such as mask usage and social distancing. Twitter user @Freeyourmindkid posted a picture, most likely received from a student at the school, and has since then blown up.
- Despite the alarming spike of coronavirus cases in southern states, such as Georgia, the lack of makes is startling to some. In the ongoing debate of whether to reopen schools for this fall semester, the predominantly white community of Paulding County consider masks a personal preference.
This is the first day of school in Paulding County, Georgia. pic.twitter.com/fzdidaAABM
— 🇯🇲Black🇭🇹Aziz🇳🇬aNANsi🇹🇹 (@Freeyourmindkid) August 4, 2020
- The Paulding County school district opened Monday, considering the risks of have thousands of teenagers roaming around. Reporter Jamie Kennedy tweeted a recording of an administrator warning all students that consequences will be handed out to those that social school operations online.
“Anything that’s going on social media that’s negative or alike without permission, photography, that’s video or anything, there will be consequences,” the recording from North Paulding principal Gabe Carmona warned.
- 15-year-old North Paulding student Hannah Watters had she received a five-day out of school suspension for being one of the people to post online. She described her experience going back to school as hectic. Hallways were unacceptably cramped, and the rate of mask usage was less than 10%.
- Moreover, Amy Westmoreland, a nurse at the school, shared her resignation letter with Buzzfeed. She stated that “Masks are not a ‘personal choice’ during a pandemic. I cannot return knowing I am not supportive of your decision to open so quickly and not at least mandate masks.”
Other students, who remained anonymous, also confirmed their suspensions. Paulding County Schools how provided no comment on the situation or details on punishments. Many remain skeptical about officials handling student health as a whole.