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Georgia leaders won’t try to delay start of in-person school

Protesters hold up signs asking for a safety-first policy in Oconee County schools during a "School Safety First Rally" at the Oconee County Board of Education in Watkinsville, Ga., on Wednesday, July 15, 2020. Parents and teachers expressed their concerns about teachers and students not having to be tested for COVID-19 before returning to school and there being no mandatory mask policy. Parents have also formed a Facebook group Safety First – Reopening Schools and are circulating a petition demanding that a group of teachers and parents be formed to be part of creating the guideline for the reopening process. (Joshua L. Jones/Athens Banner-Herald via AP)
Protesters hold up signs asking for a safety-first policy in Oconee County schools during a "School Safety First Rally" at the Oconee County Board of Education in Watkinsville, Ga., on Wednesday, July 15, 2020. Parents and teachers expressed their concerns about teachers and students not having to be tested for COVID-19 before returning to school and there being no mandatory mask policy. Parents have also formed a Facebook group Safety First – Reopening Schools and are circulating a petition demanding that a group of teachers and parents be formed to be part of creating the guideline for the reopening process. (Joshua L. Jones/Athens Banner-Herald via AP)

By JEFF AMY / Associated Press 3 min read

ATLANTA (AP) – Georgia state leaders will not ask local schools to delay face-to-face instruction until after Labor Day.

The murky proposal pushed by Gov. Brian Kemp shot through the education community on Wednesday night after it was first reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It was unclear whether the state considered mandating or was just suggesting a later start date. No written proposal was ever publicly released and state Board of Education members barely referenced it during their regular meeting Thursday, when it might have been considered.

“This week, we solicited feedback from superintendents on this idea, but the state board did not move forward with it,” Candice Broce, a spokesperson for the Republican Kemp, said in a statement. “We continue to work with educational leaders to ensure a safe and productive learning environment for all of our students in these unprecedented times.”

The governor appoints all the members of the state board, and they generally follow the governor’s lead on education policy.

A few Georgia districts are scheduled to resume face-to-face instruction as early as next week. A number of others plan to start face-to-face instruction on Aug. 3. That means teachers are scheduled to report to begin preparing in the next few days.