Jefferson City Schools will be the first in Georgia to reopen Friday. These parents won't be sending their children

“And there’s no way to (contact) trace. Once kids go from one class to the next class, to the next class, they cannot do the tracing.”

Across the US, countless parents are riddled with anxiety — for different reasons.

In school districts where classrooms are reopening, children, teachers and staff run the risk of infection.

In districts where students will learn remotely from home, parents worry about how they’ll be able go to work or afford childcare.

For the Davies, both their 14-year-old and 8-year-old sons won’t be able to go to school Friday due to the older son’s infection.

“They’re going to have a late start, but they are going to go back once we’re cleared medically,” Amber Davies said.

But both parents are worried about what will happen when their sons go back to school.

Amber Davies suffers from lupus disease and is at high risk for severe complications from Covid-19. She’s been trying to quarantine in a different room after her older son’s infection, but her husband is worried about the younger son getting infected at school.

“My biggest concern is he catches something and then brings it back to my wife,” Zack Davies said.

“I feel our children are going to be fine. They’ll bounce back. But somebody with lupus — it’s a tougher fight for her. A common cold for me and you, we’re down maybe two days. Something like that for her, we’re looking at weeks. And it’s scary.”

Across town, Raye Lynn and Pete Fuller also want to keep their two children home.

“We’d love our kids to get back to normal, but right now is not a normal time,” Fuller said.

“And looking around at the data in the area, with the infection rates what they are right now, there’s no way we can see that they can keep not only the kids safe, but all the staff, the adults (safe).”

As of Thursday, Georgia had a test positivity rate of 13.30%, according to Johns Hopkins University. The World Health Organization has recommended governments not reopen until the test positivity rate is 5% or less for at least 14 days.

But Jefferson City Schools, which serves about 3,500 students, said it’s ready to reopen and published its safety measures.

“We must be vigilant in our mitigation efforts and work together in keeping our buildings open in order to effectively meet the academic, social, and emotional needs of our students,” the school district said in a letter to parents.

It also detailed response protocols in case a student or staff member gets infected with Covid-19.

The school district recognized “there will be students who are considered high risk and/or have extenuating circumstances that may necessitate an alternative plan for instruction.”

Those families were asked to contact the special education department to discuss possible alternatives.

Raye Lynn Fuller jumped at that chance and plans to keep her kids learning virtually.

“I’m a nurse, and I work with the elderly — so I contacted them and said my child is not the one with special circumstances, but I am,” she said. “And I would choose to have an alternate method than in-person learning.”

Zack Davies is worried about the students who must go back to classrooms.

“If you look at the NBA, they’re playing in a bubble right now. NFL players have people opting out of contracts because they feel it’s unsafe,” he said. “I feel like our kids don’t really have the option to opt out.”

He also noted that while the school district strongly recommends students and staff wear face masks, they won’t be required.

A Change.org petition asking the school board to mandate face masks in schools has garnered more than 1,000 signatures.