The Georgia Department of Education and the Georgia Board of Education have announced that a number of districts will reopen their schools this fall.
The new schedule calls for schools to reopen on the last Friday of each month in order to accommodate the holiday week, and is scheduled to take effect on October 1.
This is the first time that all districts will be open on the first Friday of the month since 2006.
It’s the first reopening in 20 years.
Ahead of the new schedule, some students, parents, and parents’ groups have been staging protests and calling for school closures in several districts.
As of Friday, a Facebook group called “We Want Our Schools Open,” which has more than 2,500 members, had posted over 30,000 comments on the issue.
The Georgia House of Representatives voted on a bill to end the state’s ban on public school teachers and principals working during the holiday season.
It also passed a bill, which is now awaiting Senate approval, to allow public schools to resume after the holidays.
Georgia Gov.
Nathan Deal signed the bill into law Friday morning, and it was sent to the governor for signature.
After President-elect Donald Trump’s election, many parents and educators have expressed concern about the school closings.
A majority of Georgia schools were closed for the holidays, and the number of students enrolled at Georgia public schools was nearly 2,000 lower than it was during the last school year.
Since 2000, Georgia has closed over 10,000 schools, according to the Georgia Department.
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