Back to School: Metro Atlanta students set for 1st day of classes

ATLANTA - Tens of thousands of students across metro Atlanta are waking up early and heading to the school bus stop on Monday for the first day of the 2025-2026 school year.

Classes are back in session for Atlanta Public Schools as well as in Gwinnett, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton, and more.   

You can find FOX 5's full list of school start dates here.

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Gwinnett County emphasizes student security

For the over 182,000 students learning in Gwinnett County, the new school year brings new measures to keep them safe.

Georgia's largest school district is beginning the year with high-tech weapons detection systems installed at all of its 29 middle and 24 high schools.

Unlike metal detectors, the system pairs artificial intelligence with advanced sensors to differentiate between weapons and everyday items like keys and phones.

"The weapons detection is a component of a very comprehensive, layered mitigation strategy that we have in place," said Gwinnett County Interim Superintendent Dr. Al Taylor. "This is an important component, but it's not the only component."

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Last year, the district used the system in its stadiums and gyms, and the program was expanded to include summer school sites. The total cost of the system is nearly $20 million.

While the district's elementary schools won't receive the system, district officials say school resource officers will be stationed at those campuses to provide a security presence.

Cobb County kicks off school year

At the state's second-largest school district in Cobb County, officials are putting their preparations to the test as drivers at the county's bus depot roll out to begin their routes.

Around 105,000 Cobb County students are heading back to school. 

Last week, kindergarten and first-grade students had the chance to do a bus ride-along to help them get familiar with their bus routine, meet their bus driver, and ease some of the first-day nerves.

The district has hired 300 new teachers to work at its 109 schools across the county.

As with other districts, safety is a top priority. Earlier this year, the Cobb County Board of Education approved hiring Vapor Wake K-9 officers, dogs tried to detect explosives and firearms.

Unlike some school districts in the area, there is no cell phone ban in Cobb Schools, but that will change next year when the Distraction Free Education Act takes effect.

Atlanta Public Schools welcoming new teachers

More than 250 new employees, including hundreds of new teachers, will greet students on the first day of class in Atlanta.

Earlier this year, the school district announced a pay increase for frontline employees, including bus drivers, custodians, paraprofessionals, and nurses. Those raises are in addition to the district's 11% pay raise for teachers. APS Superintendent Dr. Bryan Johnson hopes to eventually raise the average teacher salary to $100,000. 

The district says all APS employees will also receive step increases in pay.

APS officials also are emphasizing safety on its school buses. More than 200 buses will have new cameras placed on the stop-arms to help quickly identify drivers who illegally go around the buses when the arms are deployed.

The district is also reinforcing its personal electronic device policy this school year, originally put in place in 2019. It requires students to keep their phones turned off and out of sight during the school day. 

Clayton County device policy changes

As with previous years, Clayton County students will need to have clear bookbags when they head back to class.

In 2022, the district banned all backpacks through the end of the school year for safety reasons.

Then-Clayton County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Morcease Beasley said the change is in response to an increase in the number of weapons found at schools. Students were also not allowed to use lockers.

The district will not provide bookbags to all students, so parents or guardians will have to provide the bags.

This year, Clayton County officials also announced a new policy for devices that its students take home for the upcoming school year.

The new policy will limit those take-home devices to ninth through 12th grade students with "clear agreements and support policies in place."

School officials say students in kindergarten through eighth grade will still have access to a device while at school, but they won't take them home.

Officials say the policy change is happening due to rising costs from lost, damaged, and stolen devices, as well as a push for a more sustainable approach to technology use.

DeKalb County turning off cell phones

In DeKalb County, students will have to leave their phones and other personal electronic devices off during the school day.

For the 2025-2026 school year, the DeKalb County School District announced that it is expanding its Disconnect to Reconnect initiative across all of its elementary, middle, and high schools.

The policy change will be posted in classrooms and common areas.

Officials say the policy is to support a "a safer, more focused learning environment and ensure consistent enforcement across all schools."

Cherokee County touts increased school security 

Cherokee County school leaders are touting their security measures to keep campuses safe as students head back to class.

In a video the district released, Superintendent Mary Elizabeth Davis explained their three-pillar approach to school safety: preparation, prevention, and response.

School officers in Cherokee wear body cameras to improve safety response, and schools are equipped with comprehensive camera systems.