Suspension Lifted of Georgia Student Who Posted Photos of Crowded Hall
... A 15-year-old student at North Paulding, Hannah Watters, was suspended for five days for posting images of the crowded hallways on Twitter, according to her mother, Lynne Watters, who said she filed a grievance with the school on Thursday morning.
“I expressed my concerns and disagreement with that punishment,” Ms. Watters said in a text message Thursday.
On Friday morning, Hannah tweeted that the school had called and “deleted” her suspension. She will be able to return to school on Monday, she said. “To everyone supporting me, I can’t thank you enough,” she wrote.
The high school and school district did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In an interview with CNN, Hannah said she decided to post the images because she was worried about the safety of everyone in the school building when she saw that guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were not being followed.
Although she agreed that she had breached the school’s policy, which prohibits filming students and posting their images to social media, she told CNN that she didn’t regret her actions.
“I’d like to say this is some good and necessary trouble,” Hannah said, invoking the famous phrase of Representative John Lewis, the civil rights leader who was laid to rest in Atlanta last week. “My biggest concern is not only about me being safe, it’s about everyone being safe, because behind every teacher, student and staff member there is a family, there are friends, and I would just want to keep everyone safe.”
John Lewis is still inspiring people. Fwiw:
More self-incrimination:
The superintendent of the Paulding County School District, Brian Otott, defended his system’s reopening plan, saying in a letter to the community after the hallway photos circulated that the scenes were taken out of context. Students only remained in the hallways briefly while switching classes, he wrote, and the school was following recommendations issued by the Georgia Department of Education.
But he acknowledged, “There is no question that the photo does not look good.”
Masks are not required at the school, Mr. Otott said, though the administration strongly encourages them for students and staff members.
“Wearing a mask is a personal choice, and there is no practical way to enforce a mandate to wear them,” he wrote, adding that more than 2,000 students attend the high school.
Of course there is, no different from a dress code.
... The district’s guidelines say staff members will do their best to require students to maintain social distancing, but note that it would “not be possible to enforce social distancing in classrooms or on school buses unless it is a class or a bus with fewer students.”
Duh. IF schools are to open, then those in charge MUST make them as safe as possible. Period.