Fayette Co. Schools closing ahead of Hurricane Helene

Multiple events rescheduled; community expresses concerns over delay

Grace Lovejoy, Maddie Hines, CJ Boxhill, Connor Lafontant, Allie Hartman, Ashlee Lefever, Holly Rife, Ellie Shelton, Ryan LeVan, Yasemin Kalpakci, Nyla Kërr, Betty Jane Plitt, Jozlynn Smith, Cari Heinonen, and Jayden Wadlington

Sep 26, 2024

Editor’s Note: This is a developing story and the Trail will continue to update as needed.

The statement, released by the Fayette County Public Schools, cancelling school for Friday, Sept. 27. Fayette was the last school in the area to announce it would close due to Hurricane Helene related weather.

On Thursday, Sept. 26, at 10 a.m., Fayette County Public Schools announced that school will be canceled tomorrow due to reported forecasts of Hurricane Helene hitting the Atlanta area tomorrow morning, bringing 60 mph winds to Georgia. At around 11 a.m. on Friday, Hurricane Helene is predicted to impact Fayette County, as the eye of the storm will be passing over the metro Atlanta area.

Hurricane Helene is moving through the Gulf of Mexico, making its way through Georgia as a tropical storm and coming to a stop around Tennessee. Yesterday on Sept. 25, Governor Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency for Georgia, and many schools made a decision to close. Today on Sept. 26, According to Atlanta News First, President Joe Biden approved Governor Brian Kemp’s declaration of emergency in Georgia. Fayette County was the last county in the surrounding area to close school in the wake of these recent weather concerns.

According to a post on Student Square, “Friday evening and extracurricular activities and weekend competitions may take place if circumstances allow.”

Timeline of Hurricane Helene through Georgia

When and how will Peachtree City be affected?

Thursday afternoon:

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, there will be a predicted 8 inches of rainfall. NBC news reported Hurricane Helena is currently a Category 2 with wind speeds up to 105 mph. The National Hurricane Center forecasts that the hurricane will reach wind speeds of up to 115 mph, which would make it a Category 3 storm. Fayette County Public Schools continued with normal school activities for the day; Although, all after school activities were canceled or postponed.

Friday morning:

According to CNN Weather, on Friday, September 27 at around 8:00 am, the eye of the storm is predicted to hit the Atlanta area. This could lead to flash floods, heavy tropical storms, heavy winds, and power loss. Fayette County Public Schools announced the school would be canceled on Friday. The email also stated that weekend extracurriculars and athletic events may take place if circumstances allow.

COMMUNITY CONCERNS

Community comments from the Trail’s Facebook page responding to the cancellation of extra curricular activities.

The Trail’s Facebook page listed the cancellations of after school activities on Thursday, Sept. 26, and community members posted comments.

On the FCBOE’s Facebook page, the Sept. 25 post “Fayette outscores state, country on SAT,” has 26 posts at press time, most commenting on the lack of communication about school closures. Concerns ranged from where students would wait for school buses, general student safety and requests for updates on any decisions regarding the weather.

At 10 a.m. on Thursday, the FCBOE Facebook page posted a statement closing schools Friday. There were 39 posts at press time.

While some comments criticized the district for waiting to close, some comments praised the school district for not closing on Thursday, as the storm wouldn’t hit Fayette County until after school had passed, and thanked the district for all they do to keep students safe.

STUDENT REACTIONS

Several students have expressed how they feel about the school closure.

“I’m glad school is being closed tomorrow, but the football game, like, I don’t mind since it’s an away game, but it’s the only disappointing thing,” sophomore Maggie Johnston said.

One student thought the school district would close on Friday.

“Honestly, I feel really good about it. What school would really have us going to school during a hurricane, really? It’s really good because I get to have a day off,” Phoenix Manley (10) said.

A picture circulating on Snapchat Wednesday, Sept. 25 showing school closures as of that evening, with the exception of Fayette County.

ACADEMICS

Assistant Principal Leon Hammond informed students and parents via Parent Square that Friday’s PSAT readiness activity would be rescheduled to Monday, Sept. 30.

SPORTS

According to Athletic Director Leon Hammond, Friday night’s football game at Northgate will be postponed to Saturday at 12 P.M. and the theme will be USA.

The Varsity Volleyball team’s Senior Night was rescheduled due to Hurricane Helene’s effects. The event got moved to next week, but one of the two teams that were originally scheduled had to drop out due to prior commitments. The team is going to Pace Academy for a tournament on Saturday, Sept. 27. Due to the weather five teams have already dropped out.

The Chiefettes will not be attending the Northgate game on Saturday due to the weather.

“I feel bad for Northgate because that’s really weird [timing for a] game,” Chiefette Elsie Wood said.

According to Landmark High School’s calendar, the Cross Country meet against McIntosh High School appears to still be scheduled for Saturday 27, at 7:45 A.M to 10:00 A.M.

Varsity Softball’s game against Lovejoy was rescheduled due to Hurricane Helene.

“I’m upset about it, but it got rescheduled to Monday, so it’s not too big of a deal,” Junior Varsity Softball player Tori Davis said.

According to several sources, Competition Cheer’s Invitational on Saturday at Central High School is still taking place.

MARCHING BAND

To prepare for competition season, the Spirit of McIntosh marching band has already had two Saturday practices in a row, according to brass team junior Chelby Gambrel. This means the band will not perform at Saturday’s rescheduled football game.

“I feel kind of relieved because it has been such a busy schedule for band right now,” Aimee Tapiz said, a senior and a percussionist.

“[Band Director Barbara Baker] told us we weren’t going to the [rescheduled Northgate game] during… third period,” Gambrel said. “She didn’t want us to have four Saturday events back to back. We have a competition next Saturday, so taking away all our Saturdays was too much.”

But not all band members are pleased the band will not be in the Northgate stands on Saturday.

“I’m sad the game got rescheduled because it’s taking away time for me to practice playing the clarinet in the stands,” Jing Ning Cernin (9) said.

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About the Contributors

Grace Lovejoy, Editor-in-Chief

Grace Lovejoy is serving as the Editor-In-Chief for 2024-2025 school year. Lovejoy has been on staff for three years now and served as the Features Editor last year. Lovejoy has won 3 Best of SNO pieces, including her first piece “Collision course: teens and golf cart accidents in Peachtree City” which was the first for the Trail. Lovejoy has been an Ambassador and a part of McIntosh BETA Club for 2 years. She was involved in the Student Press Law Center’s New Voices program in 2023 and won a Best of Sno award for her story “The five freedoms in the First,” recapping her experience. Lovejoy has been involved in theater for 2 years and has performed and worked backstage on numerous shows. This year she is serving as the Historian for the McIntosh Thespians Troupe. Lovejoy is eager to meet the new staff and have another successful year on the Trail.

Maddie Hines, Multimedia

Madison Hines is a Junior at McIntosh and is serving her second year on staff as part of the Multimedia team. In her freshman year, she was Vice President of her class. Hines is currently a McIntosh ambassador and has also done debate at the state level. Hines is interested in things like creative writing, film and law. In fact, from 2017-2019, she spent three weeks of each summer staying on campus at Emory University for this summer program called SIG (Summer Institute for the Gifted.) There she took classes like song writing, filming, working a camera, creative writing, things of that nature. At Emory, she was able to see what life would be like as a college student. She hopes to obtain some degree in law as well as journalism in the future. During her free time, she likes to play volleyball, bake, watch movies, and spend time with friends and family. Because she is new on staff, she hopes to learn new things and new life skills such as responsibility, punctuality and reliability.

CJ Boxhill, Multimedia

CJ Boxhill is a junior at McIntosh and is serving his first year on staff as a part of the Multimedia team. He plans to focus on helping people share their experiences and public speaking opportunities. Boxhill is a current member of the Spirit of Mcintosh Marching Band, he serves a leadership role as percussion logistics in the band. He also serves as the Vice President of the Skills USA club. Boxhill has won two Rookie Of The Year awards and also two Student Choice awards. Boxhil made silver academic recognition these past two years. He is also a Mcintosh ambassador. Boxhill has been working at Chick-Fil-A for the past six months and serves as a team member there. When Boxhill is not working or at school he enjoys playing video games or hanging out with his friends. He is very interested in politics and law. Boxhill is the last of his family to attend McIntosh High School, his sister Davian and Cousins Katrina and Chris have all attended McIntosh. One of his biggest goals in life is to be elected as a future President of the United States.

Connor Lafontant, Staff

Connor Lafontant is a sophomore at McIntosh, and is currently serving his second year on the Trail. He was part of the first staff on trail to receive a Distinguished Site Badge. Lafontant is a multi-sport athlete, He runs track and wrestles here at McIntosh. He also played soccer for another rec team in Peachtree City. Not only does he play sports, he also played the trombone for 3 years. He is also part of the honor roll. Lafontant volunteers at a homeless shelter and provided over 14,000 pounds of food for the homeless. Lafontant has also helped distribute covid vaccine shots to over 1,000 people. He loves to do many things such as travel or swim but helping people and giving is his favorite.

Allie Hartman, Staff

Allie Hartman is a freshman at McIntosh and this is her first year on the Trail Staff. In middle school, Hartman has received a lot of academic achievements. She was on honor roll for 2 years straight and was part of Beta Club. Her favorite places to volunteer are The Midwest Food Bank and Clothes Less Traveled. Hartman was also part of the Booth Yearbook Staff. Hartman enjoys reading and writing. She has read 32 books this past year. In addition, she likes to bake and listen to music. Hartman’s favorite dessert to bake are snickerdoodles. Her favorite artists are Madison Beer, Faye Webster, Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Laufey and Taylor Swift. Outside of school, Hartman likes playing tennis with her sister and hanging out with her friends. She is excited to get to know the staff and learn more about journalism.

Ashlee Lefever, Staff

Ashlee Lefever is a senior at McIntosh and is serving her first year on the Trail staff. Lefever was born in the garden state of New Jersey where she grew up with her Mom who loved novel series such as Harry Potter and Twilight creating her first interest in reading. Lefever works a full time job, however in her free time she enjoys naps with her cats, listening to music, and having chit-chats with her mom. She is currently reading The Road, by Cormac McCarthy for her AP Literature class. After graduating highschool, Lefever desires to achieve her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in order to qualify for a RN license.

Holly Rife, Staff

Holly Rife is senior at McIntosh and her first year on the Trail Staff. Rife enjoys playing sports and being with the people she loves. Rife is returning to Mcintosh as a senior, from transferring her sophomore year. Rife has attended multiple different schools, while also discovering her tact for public speaking, as she was the face of her grade at Landmark Christian school, with reciting poetry. As she was forced to give up her role as one of the cheerleading team captains at Trinity Christian School. Along with other interests, Rife has interned with different event planners, while deciding which path she wants to pursue. “ I am so thankful to be able to be a part of The Trail for my final year as a Mcintosh student,”

Ellie Shelton, Staff

Ellie Shelton is a Senior at McIntosh and this is her first year on the Trail Staff. She decided to join after discovering the site and seeing how students were free to express themselves there. Shelton is interested in writing about politics, feminism and philosophy. During her many years of taking Spanish classes in school, she has competed in and won poetry declamation contests at Clemson University, winning first place last year for her performance. Along with Spanish, her other passions are classic literature and computer science. She especially seeks out problem-solving because it gives her a sense of accomplishment and helps her stay determined. Shelton is spending her last year of school on the varsity Quiz Bowl team and working at the daycare Royal Learners. Outside of school and work, she spends her time reading and finding out new things. “There are so many things to find out about this world. Be curious. Seek out knowledge and you will find it.”

Ryan LeVan, Multimedia

Ryan LeVan is a Junior at McIntosh and a is serving his second year on staff. LeVan is very passionate about things such as family, friends, pets and fitness. LeVan’s specialty lies in photography, holds a GSPA superior rating and has extensive experience in nature and sky photography and videography. LeVan is on the McIntosh wrestling team and an advocate for personal fitness and training. He also is a Life Scout in Scouts BSA and is currently working on his eagle project. LeVan has won multiple awards in scouting. LeVan’s ambitions for the future include attending “ICE Culinary School” and obtaining a Masters Degree in business to ideally open and run his personal restaurant. LeVan is excited to have the opportunity to succeed in The Trail as a Multimedia Staffer and to help teach any less experienced staffers how to be successful in journalism and more specifically photography.

Yasemin Kalpakci, Features Editor

Yasemin Kalpakci is a junior at McIntosh High School and currently serves as the Features Editor for the McIntosh Trail. She joined the Trail staff in early 2024 and was part of the team that won the SNO Distinguished Site Award, the first for the school. In addition to her journalism accomplishments, Yasemin has also achieved success in other areas. She and her fellow staffers won a Superior award in GSPA, and her art has been published on the board of education. Yasemin has been involved in the Beta Club since elementary school and is an active volunteer at animal shelters and various school activities. She was instrumental in creating her old school's World Food Club, promoting cultural exchange through food. Outside of school, Yasemin enjoys listening to Lana Del Rey, creating drama in The Sims, binge-watching Gilmore Girls, and spending hours on Pinterest. Like many high school students, she's uncertain about her future plans but hopes to figure it out soon.

Nyla Kërr, News Editor

News Editor Nyla Kërr is spending her second year on the McIntosh Trail. Kërr has always been passionate about writing and has been honoring her craft for the past six years. She was a part of the first Trail staff to win a School Newspapers Online Distinguished Site award. Kërr has also received two academic awards for outstanding achievement in biology and English. She has also been awarded the President’s Award for Educational Excellence. When she is not buried deep in her classwork, Kërr enjoys spending time with her family, playing the guitar and doing calisthenics.

Betty Jane Plitt, Staff

Betty Jane Plitt is currently a freshman at McIntosh and serving her first year on the Trail. Plitt often spends her free time reading, doing homework, listening to music or doing taekwondo, in which she has a black belt. Her current favorite book series is A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, which she highly recommends. Additionally, Plitt’s current favorite artists include Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, Laufey and the genre of folk music as a whole. Plitt also enjoys volunteering at places such as the Midwest Food Bank or Royal Animal Refuge. Although when she gets a chance away from her usual activities, Plitt is also part of colorguard in the McIntosh Marching Band. She specializes in flag currently but hopes to expand her skills to rifle and sabre. Plitt does not currently hold any achievements at McIntosh High School as she has not attended for very long but she was on honor roll for every grade at J.C. Booth Middle School. Plitt was also part of Beta Club and Thespian Society at J.C. Booth, eager to get involved wherever she can. Now as a member of the Trail, Plitt hopes to expand her knowledge on writing, on-site journaling and meeting deadlines.

Jozlynn Smith, Staff

Jozlynn Smith is a new student at McIntosh. She is a freshman and is also serving her first year on the Trail Staff. She wants to focus on getting the truth out for others to read and relate to. Smith wants her stories to give people the enlightenment of their peers, and give people the spotlight they deserve. Smith believes that everyone is a story, and has thought-provoking things about them. In 2023, Smith joined an international writing competition and came in the top 10 of all the people in her state. She wrote an outstanding essay, giving an insight of the book she was assigned. Placing in the top 10 in her state, Smith received an award that is hung up where everyone can see at her grandparents house. Smith also received a first place for an art piece she had put in her local art show. Smith is a creative writer and artist but most of all she is an expert on food. She loves Dr.Pepper and mozzarella sticks. She is a picky eater but is up to trying new restaurants and new food items.

Cari Heinonen, Staff

Cari Heinonen is a freshman at McIntosh and this is her first year on the Trail Staff. She plans to focus on photography and writing. Heinonen holds membership in Beta club and the National Thespian Society. She is also a part of McIntosh’s color guard program and dances at the Peachtree City School of Dance. In Heinonen’s free time, she enjoys reading and listening to music.

Jayden Wadlington, Staff

Jayden Wadlington is a senior at McIntosh and this is her first year on the Trail Staff. While on staff she hopes to presume multimedia. Wadlington is going into her fourth year in The Spirit of McIntosh marching band. She has participated in The Black Student Union, The Unity Club, Sources of Strength and Knitting and Crochet Club. Her favorite subject in school is Government because she enjoys learning about politics. Outside of school Wadlington enjoys reading, hanging out with friends, working and keeping herself informed on politics and what goes on around the world. After high school Wadlington wants to go to flight school to become a flight attendant.