✨personal news✨ Some of you (or maybe just my parents?) have noticed seeing fewer of my stories in The Daily Progress lately. That's because I've joined @ajc as the Higher Education reporter. I'm thrilled about the opportunity and work ahead. Really hope you'll follow along...

Druid Hills High, one of the oldest schools in DeKalb County, has long been slated for renovations. But rising construction costs and challenges to building at the site mean DeKalb has to pump the brakes on the needed upgrades at the school. Now what?

We don't know yet what this could look like in Georgia. A spox for @JonBurnsGA said in a statement they want to create uniformity across the state, and find solutions that "reflect the severity of these actions while ensuring the well-being of students who may be struggling."

Tennessee lawmakers have already gone down this path. Reporters from @propublica, @WPLN and @6News have documented some of the effects of the zero-tolerance policies. The number of expulsions have gone up, and several students faced severe consequences for misunderstandings.

After the Apalachee High shooting, @ajc counted more than 100 arrests across Georgia - almost entirely juveniles - who made threats against schools. Would harsher penalties have reduced that number? A top Ga. Republican is willing to test the theory

Metal detectors are rare in U.S. schools. As one expert put it: "The whole idea of weapon detection is really too late. Prevention has to start before there’s a gun in the school.”

Republicans won school board races in Cobb and Forsyth counties last night -- maintaining the majority in two hubs for school culture wars in Georgia. @ajc

After Cobb schools initially refused to ID the company that will be using national intelligence tactics to detect school threats, the district confirmed the company is Servius Group -- a private travel security firm for the wealthy, @ThadMoore reported

The DOE doesn't know how much money this could cost, or how many GA schools are without school resource officers. We do know that - GA school districts employ 2,179 SROs - About 2,300 schools - Some schools employ multiple SROs, some have none More @ajc https://t.co/RHvTkXBZQH

At least a dozen people in Georgia — mostly students — have been arrested for threatening a school in the days after the shooting at Apalachee High. Hoaxes or not, the threats have real consequences. @ajc @AJC_Education

After a Dunwoody High student died of an overdose in May, another student wanted to make sure Narcan is available everywhere on campus. Those efforts paid off this week when some of the newly available medication was given to another student in need @ajc

The latest effort to reduce soaring rates of chronic absenteeism in metro Atlanta schools: Automated texts to the parents of frequently absent students. The early results are promising, some districts told me and @Marthareports

Censorship policies in Cobb — the ones that led to the firing of Katie Rinderle, a teacher who read students a book that challenged gender norms — are "constitutionally suspect," more than a dozen states said in court filings. More @ajc

https://t.co/qTFbHVNWCH @bycassidy @Marthareports

Thursday was a busy time for several metro Atlanta school districts. @bycassidy reported on this news in DeKalb:

@bycassidy reports on how some DeKalb school resource officers are making a lot of money in overtime pay:

@bycassidy follows two @DeKalbSchools students through a school event many of us remember doing ourselves: the science fair.

A Cobb school board meeting is hosting a community meeting Thursday to address school safety. More about it from @bycassidy

@bycassidy reports on an effort by some Marietta parents to appeal the district's decision to remove nearly two dozen book:

Story @bycassidy Cobb schools spent $1 million on redistricting lawsuit, records show https://t.co/Bsd3CsGIGu