To begin the new school year, a Georgia public charter school sent consent forms home to parents informing them of a new corporal punishment policy, CNN affiliate WRDW reported Friday. The superintendent of the Georgia School for Innovation and the Classics says a third of the 100 "consent to paddle forms" that have been returned have granted permission to the school.

"A parent can either give consent for us to use that as a disciplinary measure or they can deny consent," Jody Boulineau, superintendent of the Hephzibah, Georgia-based school, told WRDW. "There's no obligation. It's not required."

He added that the school received an uneven response from parents. "I've heard, 'Great, it's about time. We're so glad that this is happening again, they should've never taken it out of schools.' All the way to 'Oh my goodness I can't believe you are doing that'," said Boulineau.

Georgia School for Innovation and the Classics, which first opened its door to students three years ago, serves kindergarten through sixth-grade students, though it plans to expand into the upper grades over time. All Georgia resident students are eligible to attend and 694 students were enrolled as of the state's most recent enrollment count in March 2018. (CNN)