Today the ribbon was cut on the newest public high school in Fayette County. The Fayette County Public School Board also voted to cancel classes on August 21st, the day of the solar eclipse.
Principal Lester Diaz told a filled auditorium that Fredrick Douglas High School will feature an academy model. “A lot of schools have magnet programs. We want to treat every kid like a magnet kid. We want to find what that student is interested in and almost look like a small college. Well we already do look like a small college. But almost have the you know you’re in this academy and you follow this pathway and we align your electives with things that interest you.”
And the school board voted today to cancel classes on August 21st. That works out well for families who wanted to get closer to the epicenter of the solar eclipse that afternoon. But administrators actually needed a day off the deal with last minute staffing and redistricting issues that may arise the first week of classes because of the new high school. So Fayette County Public Schools are closed on August 21st. Students instead will be in class on October 27th which was initially a free day.