School from Viral Hallway Photo Forced to Close After COVID Cases Skyrocket

Sometimes you have to wonder just how big your sign from above needs to be in order to see it.

Last week, a young woman attending North Paulding High School in the far-flung suburban sprawl that exists around Atlanta snapped this now-infamous photograph of her extremely crowded school hallway:

A family member teaches at this high school in Georgia (North Paulding High) that's made the news. Teachers and students were told they could be suspended if they posted photos of the school in a bad light. The student who took this photo for the yearbook has been suspended. pic.twitter.com/plds4vZPNN

— Jamie Ford (@JamieFord) August 6, 2020

That student was indeed suspended for this photograph, at least temporarily.  After several news outlets picked up her story, the school quickly attempted to save face by rescinding that punishment.

Now, in what some people might consider a fairly poignant reminder from the universe at large, North Paulding High School has closed.

A Georgia high school that was featured in a viral photo showing students packed tightly in a hallway has closed temporarily after nine students and staff members tested positive for the coronavirus, CBS Atlanta affiliate WGCL-TV reports. North Paulding High School in Dallas, Georgia, reopened for in-person learning August 3.

The school will be closed to in-person learning Monday and Tuesday, according to a letter sent to students’ parents and guardians on Sunday. Extracurricular activities have also been canceled for those days.

Students will be informed if they can return for in-person learning on Tuesday night, the letter stated. The letter also noted the building will be “thoroughly cleaned and disinfected” while the school is shuttered.

On Saturday, the school informed students’ parents and guardians that after one week of in-person instruction, six students and three staff members had tested positive for COVID-19.

There is little doubt that we will be hearing similar news from similarly-crowded school across the nation in the coming days.