On Oct. 7, Greene County Schools students and staff will put on their sneakers and take part in the school system’s 2nd annual Walk to School Day. The actual date of International Walk to School Day is Oct. 5, but school officials designated the first Friday in October as Walk to School Day for Greene County School System.

In the U.S., International Walk to School Day is expected to include 5,000 schools from 50 states. Walkers from the U.S. will join children and adults in 40 countries around the world.

Walk to School events work to create safer routes for walking and bicycling, and emphasize the importance of issues such as increasing physical activity among children, pedestrian safety, traffic congestion, concern for the environment and building connections between families, schools and the broader community.

Last year, more than 1,600 students from Corry Boston Jackson Preschool, Greensboro Elementary School, Union Point Elementary School, Carson Middle School, Greene County High School and Lake Oconee Academy participated in the walk. Three separate walks took place throughout the county on Oct. 1 – Union Point Elementary students walked along Dolvin Avenue to the elementary school; students from Greensboro Elementary, Carson Middle, Greene County High and CBJ Preschool walked along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to their respective schools; and Lake Oconee Academy students walked down North Campus Drive and Knowledge Way to the school’s gymnasium.

This year, Union Point Elementary School students will once again walk along Dolvin Avenue to the elementary school, while students from CBJ Preschool, Greensboro Elementary, Carson Middle, Greene County High and Greene County Alternative School will walk along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. Teachers, parents and volunteers will join students on the walk.

For additional information about GCSS Walk to School Day celebration, please contact Robyn Brunson, Communications Coordinator, at (706) 453-7688 ext. 2247.