McCleskey, Simpson middle schools to finish week all-remote

Two middle schools in East Cobb are conducting classes in an all-remote setting Thursday and Friday, after five others in the Cobb County School District switched to online-only instruction earlier in the week.

McCleskey Middle School and Simpson Middle School families were notified Wednesday of the changes, with nearly identical messages posted on each school’s website.

Also switching to all-remote learning for Thursday and Friday were seven other schools, bringing the total number to 14 schools that are finishing the week online-only.

According to the school district’s most recent figures, there are 21 active COVID-19 cases at McCleskey, the most for any single Cobb school. There was only 1 active case at Simpson.

On Tuesday, the district announced that Hillgrove High School, Nickajack Elementary School, Clay Harmony Leland Elementary School, Barber Middle School and Lindley Middle School would be going all-remote for the rest of the week.

The district didn’t specifically explain its decisions for each school, nor did it respond to a question from East Cobb News about the case numbers at McCleskey.

A district spokeswoman issued the following statement Thursday in response to a request from East Cobb News for more information about the additional schools switching to remote learning:

“This decision has been made based on student, staff, and school needs and will allow us to offer a face-to-face classroom option as soon as possible. At this time, the schools will remain remote through the end of this week. Each school will continue to be evaluated on a day-by-day, school-by-school basis. If that timing changes, it will be communicated to those students, staff, and communities directly.”

The other schools going all-remote with McCleskey and Simpson for Thursday and Friday are Baker, Bullard and Hayes ES; Campbell, Griffin and Smitha MS and Campbell HS.

A district spokeswoman on Tuesday refuted social media postings saying the entire district would be going all-remote, saying the school system “remains committed to face-to-face and remote classroom options for students and parents.”

The district released updated figures Wednesday showing that 66 percent of enrolled students began the spring semester last week in a face-to-face setting.

But other school districts in metro Atlanta have been switching to all-remote learning. Next week, Gwinnett County schools, the largest in Georgia, and Fulton County schools will go fully virtual.

Cherokee schools have been closed to in-person classes this week due to a high number of teachers who are out due to COVID infection or who are in quarantine.

Atlanta and DeKalb schools were all-virtual for the fall semester and their plans for reopening campuses are still on hold.

Cobb schools reported 351 new COVID cases last week, but the district does not break down how many of those are students and staff.

According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, there have been new 594 cases of COVID in Cobb County among ages 5-17 over a 14-day period through Jan. 7, with a 14-day average case rate of 450 per 100,000 people.

Social media postings in the last week from Cobb teachers and staff have expressed exhaustion and concern over staffing levels at schools.

With its update last week the Cobb school district revealed active case numbers for the first time.

North Cobb High School has 17 active cases, there are 14 at Awtrey Middle School, 12 at Lassiter High School, 11 at Walton High School and 10 at Kell High School.

In addition, there are 8 active cases each at Bells Ferry Elementary School and Wheeler High School in East Cobb.

All of those schools remain open for classroom instruction.

Dr. Janet Memark, director of Cobb and Douglas Public Health, said Tuesday that parents who are “able to have your children go virtual at this point [if] this is something that if you can do it, it is recommended.”

But Memark has not recommended that all Cobb schools go fully remote.