Students at Apalachee High School in Georgia met with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as they geared up for their first day back after a deadly shooting on campus.
The school has been shut down since Sept. 4, when a 14-year-old student opened fire on campus, killing two students and two teachers and wounding nine others. Officials charged him as an adult on four counts of felony murder.
Over the weekend, The Rock met with students from the school’s football team, after inviting them to one of the sound stages he has been working on in nearby Atlanta.
He shared a photo from that day alongside a heartfelt message on Tuesday, when students headed back to class for the first time since the shutdown.
“As the students and staff take this next healing step and go back to school today, the one message I wanted to share with them is what I also shared with the football team: It’s not the actual event itself that happened on September 4th that will define them for the rest of their lives, it’s how they respond to it that defines them for the rest of their lives,” he wrote.
“Good luck and good healing, it starts today,” said The Rock.
He shared that message alongside a photo of himself and members of the football team holding their fists up in the air, in a symbol of strength.
In previous posts, the actor shared he had been “blown away” by the students’ spirit and energy. He also promised to attend the football team’s first home game.
The high school reopened Tuesday with half days through Oct. 4. Until then, students will report to school at 8:15 a.m. with shortened class periods, and be dismissed at 12:40 p.m.
Students will return to a full-time schedule after fall break on Oct. 14.
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Apalachee High School previously said that the campus is reopening with an increased law enforcement presence. Additional counselors, therapy dogs and other resources are also available.
J Hall, where the shooting occurred, is currently inaccessible and will remain closed for the rest of the school year.
Because of that closure, all social studies classes will now be held in a nearby Barrow County School System building, where buses will transport students to and from that location. This measure is temporary until new classroom pods arrive, likely by January 2025.
The school held an open house on Monday to welcome back families.
“Please remember, our counselors are available to offer guidance, support, and resources tailored to help students navigate this transition,” the school said. “Thank you for your patience, understanding, and trust. We are all in this together, and we will continue to support one another.”
In addition to the gunman, his father, 54-year-old Colin Gray, was also charged in connection to the shooting. He gifted his son the AR-style weapon used in the incident, which came months after authorities paid his son a visit last year to investigate online threats.
The father was charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children.
An investigation remains ongoing.
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