Better Together
7/31/26 • News from the Clarke County School District
1. Back to School Guide
The 2026-27 Back to School Guide is a one-stop shop for everything you need for your student to be first-day ready – including the open house schedule for Monday, August 3, school supply lists and uniform/dress code information for last-minute shopping, after-school programming registration, and more!
2. Fill Out Request Form for New Bus Riders, Download New Transportation App
If you have a student who is new to CCSD or a student who didn't ride the bus last year but is in need of transportation this year, complete the new bus rider request form (one form per student)! All families should also download the new EZArrival bus tracker app in place of the former app (Edulog). Find more information about EZArrival at www.clarke.k12.ga.us/transportation by clicking on the dropdown tab labeled, "Search for Bus Routes and Schools."
3. Walk Your Child to Class (Elementary School and Younger)!
CCSD schools will allow families of students in grades PK-5 to walk their child inside the first three days of the school year (Wednesday through Friday, Aug. 7). If you are driving and decide to walk your student into the building, please park in a designated parking spot to allow the car drop-off line to keep moving efficiently. Beginning Monday, Aug. 10, students who are car riders or walkers will need to be dropped off at their designated spot.
4. Give Yourself Some Extra Time
If you're driving your student to school, or if you're a student who is driving yourself, make a plan to leave your home a little early to ensure you have plenty of time to get to school smoothly as everyone readjusts to first-day traffic! Watch your speed in school zones, keep your eyes open for students, families, and crossing guards at crosswalks, and never pass a bus with its stop sign activated.
5. What's for Breakfast and Lunch on the First Day? We're Glad You Asked!
Menus for August are now available and can be downloaded and printed for your refrigerator from the district website. Weekly menus will also be posted to the same menus page every Friday afternoon throughout the school year, and you can access the daily menu every morning the official CCSD App!
Join the CCSD Superintendent for an Update on Her First 90 Days!
CCSD Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Scott will be hosting three public sessions in the final week of August focusing on her first official 90 days in the full-time position and to answer questions from the community! Sessions are scheduled for the following dates, times, and locations:
- 5:30-6:30 p.m. Tuesday, August 25 - Heard Park, McKinley Gym, 400 McKinley Drive
- 5:30-6:30 p.m. Thursday, August 27 - Athens-Clarke County Library Community Room, 2025 Baxter Street
- 5:30-6:30 p.m. Monday, August 31 - Rhema Christian Fellowship, 1850 Danielsville Road.
Submit questions in advance by emailing feedback@clarke.k12.ga.us or filling out the anonymous form at bit.ly/AskDrScott.
Is there a teacher at your or your child's school who goes above and beyond? Who inspires their students and their colleagues? Who "Raises the Bar" in everything they do? Now it's your turn to elevate them!
CCSD is now accepting nominations for our 2026-27 school-level teachers of the year! Complete the short form at bit.ly/ccsdteachernomination to spotlight the teacher or teachers you think deserve the title! Complete a separate form for each teacher you're nominating.
Nominations will be accepted through August 9, and after staff voting at each school, school winners will be announced in early September and featured individually on CCSD social media in the lead-up to the announcement of the district winner in late October. So let's get those nominations going, and tell us why your nominee is the best of the best!
Make an Investment in Our Seniors!
At CCSD, we're continuing to build on the momentum of making Athens the first community in America where every student has the opportunity to graduate high school as an investor, and we need your help!
We have approximately $77,000 left to raise by Monday, August 10, to meet our $400,000 goal of fully funding real $1,000 investment portfolios for every member of the Class of 2027 at Cedar Shoals High School, Clarke Central High School, and Classic City High School through the Gifted Savings financial education and literacy program!
Help us cross the finish line by Monday, August 10! Donate to the CCSD Gifted Savings Fund through the Athens Area Community Foundation at bit.ly/GSCCSD.
Learn more about the life-changing impact of Gifted Savings on CCSD students in year one, and get inspired by this video to be a part of creating brighter futures for our youth!
Become a Mentor to a CCSD Student
Here in Athens-Clarke County, community members just like you have been making a difference in the lives of CCSD students since 1991 through the Clarke County Mentor Program.
Start the process of joining the program as a volunteer today, and become a role model to a child by encouraging positive choices, boosting their self-esteem, and supporting their academic achievement and personal growth! Mentors visit their assigned “mentee” at school, ideally once each week during the school year, for a meal, game, academic help, school program, and conversation.
Calendar Reminders
Now Enrolling for 2026-27!
Download the CCSD Mobile App!
Stay up to date with access to event information, documents, school news, student stories, and even emergency notifications. See the video below for a tutorial on downloading and customizing the app to your preferred settings. You can download the app for free on Google Play or Apple App Store.
Download for Android: https://aptg.co/xQ_qX1
Download for iPhone: https://aptg.co/zCh8gX
Download the EZArrival App for Bus Info
Parents/guardians of students who ride a bus to and/or from school can use the EZArrival page on the district website or download the EZArrival mobile app to find information about their student’s bus.
Breakfast and Lunch Menus
Take Advantage of our School-based Health Centers!
School-based health centers make accessing medical and dental care as easy as walking down the hall. Students and families throughout the district are encouraged to take advantage of one of our four school-based health centers for many of their basic healthcare needs. Click the links for additional information.
See Something, Say Something
As part of our continued commitment to ensuring that our schools remain welcoming and safe environments for all, we are pleased to introduce the Say Something Anonymous Reporting System (SS-ARS) to CCSD students, staff, and families.
Students, staff, and the general public can submit a tip 24/7 about concerning or threatening behaviors in one of three ways:
- Directly through the website at saysomething.net. The direct reporting link for the general public can be found here. Students and staff will use a private link that they can access from their CCSD Clever account.
- Download the Say Something app on your smartphone - Google Play / Apple Store.
- Call 1-844-572-9669. You can also text “TIP” to 79775.
Every submission goes directly to a trained crisis counselor who gathers details and shares the information and next steps with the school safety response team and law enforcement (as needed). Every CCSD school has in place a trained “Say Something” response team, including counselors, administrators, and other support staff.
How to Address Questions, Concerns
Board Contact Information, Meetings
The Clarke County Board of Education welcomes community feedback. Here are ways you can share your voice:
- Contact BOE Members: Click here to view a list of the BOE members and their contact information.
- Find Your Board Member: Use Athens-Clarke County's online voter information tool at www.accgov.com/voterinfo to enter your address and find your BOE member and your other elected representatives.
- Attend a Meeting: The board's next scheduled meeting is Thursday, August 13, with the work session beginning at 5 p.m., followed by the regular meeting at 7 p.m. All meetings are held in the Vernon Payne Meeting Hall at the CCSD administrative offices building, located at 595 Prince Ave. in Athens. The public is invited to attend meetings in person. Meetings are also streamed live and are available for on-demand viewing on the CCSD YouTube channel. Click here for the board meeting schedule.
- Agendas: Click to access board meeting agendas.
- Board Briefs: Read the "Board Briefs" overview from meetings.
- Public Comments: Click here for information on how to sign up to speak at a BOE meeting.
- Review Policies for Review: View and comment on district policies pending public review.
Museum of Art Family Day Schedule
The Georgia Museum of Art holds a monthly free Family Day event with activities centered around an exhibit and theme. These events typically take place on a Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon. Upcoming dates include:
- August 22
- September 19
- October 10
- November 7
- December 12
- January 23.
Watch the Georgia Soccer Team Play in Sanford Stadium for Free!
This summer marks the 30th anniversary of the U.S. women's national soccer team's victory over China in the Summer Olympics gold medal match on Aug. 1, 1996, at Sanford Stadium on the University of Georgia campus, and the Georgia women's team will host a commemorative match in the stadium against James Madison on Thursday, August 20, at 7 p.m. A fireworks show will follow the conclusion of the match. The first 3,000 students will receive a free T-shirt and Chick-fil-A, while the first 4,000 fans will receive a free poster.
Learn more about "Soccer in Sanford," and claim your tickets!
Build Essential Job Skills, Advance Your Career, or Grow Your Business
The Georgia Public Library Service is pleased to announce no-cost access to Google Career Certificates and the Google AI Professional Certificate to Georgia public library cardholders. These courses will help Georgians build essential job skills in high-growth fields, including flexible, online training to support career advancement and business growth.
Students: Use Your Library PLAY Card!
As part of a collaboration between CCSD and the Athens Regional Library System, the PLAY Card account provides each CCSD student with free materials (books, magazines, etc.) and online resources from the public library to help your child succeed in school, along with fun resources to support a lifelong love of reading. You and your child can check out materials at the libraries by entering their student ID number.
Stay Informed with ACCGov 'Notify Me' Feature
Anyone in the community may sign up for email and/or text notifications from the Athens-Clarke County Unified Government in a wide variety of categories with more than 100 different options. Visit accgov.com/notifyme and select the list you'd like to sign up for.
211 – Get Connected. Get Help.
211 is United Way of Northeast Georgia’s health and human service helpline – a free and confidential program accessible to anyone. Call 211, text your zip code to 898-211, or visit the online database.