Cobb Schools Will Delay Students' Release During Eclipse

MARIETTA, GA -- Students in Cobb County will be under the watchful eye of teachers and faculty during the upcoming partial solar eclipse, the school district announced Wednesday. The celestial phenomenon will occurred Monday afternoon, August 21, according to prognosticators.

Citing safety reasons, the Cobb school district will delay student dismissal by 45 minutes, with buses at the ready to resume services. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

An eclipse, where the moon passes between the sun and Earth, is a once in a lifetime occurrence for many in the United States and the good part is that the August event will be visible from coast to coast. In Atlanta, only 3 percent of the sun will be visible during totality. In North Georgia, 100 percent totality will last for only a few minutes. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

“For those of you fortunate enough to be in northeast Georgia on August 21st, you’ll get treated to a total solar eclipse, when the moon passes directly between the Earth and the sun, casting its shadow upon the face of the Earth,” NASA scientist Dr. Noah Petro told WSB-TV.

For Cobb students, "the peak time to experience the solar eclipse falls during our regularly scheduled elementary school dismissal time," district spokeswoman Donna Lowry said in a news release. "Since student safety is always our first priority we will start the day on time and delay dismissal to ensure that neither students nor employees are on the roadways during the time of the eclipse."

High schools and middle schools will delay dismissal as well, she said. Parents will be able to pick up their child at the regular dismissal time if they like, the school district said.

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