Now that we’ve gotten our
first taste of winter, I thought it might be helpful to discuss snow days and
the process behind the decision-making.
We will always make decisions with student safety as our top priority. I have three school-age children, and my wife and I both work outside the home. I certainly understand getting kids to school on bad weather days can be stressful. If you don’t feel safe sending your children to school because of inclement weather, please keep them home. Every day, parents drop off their children late and/or pick them up early for reasons ranging from athletic contests to dental appointments. We want to see regular school attendance, of course, but we also trust parents to make good decisions for their children.
I understand many families get upset when we don’t cancel school after snow or ice. We live in Nebraska where bad weather is a weekly — If not daily! — occurrence, but we don’t cancel school every time it snows. I suspect most parents understand this, but it bears repeating. Snow days create challenges for many families. Many students live in single parent households or in homes where both parents work. Cancelling school can create hardships for families who need daycare for their children. Some parents are forced to leave young children at home with little or no supervision because they can’t miss work. This too is a safety issue.
When bad weather is anticipated, I typically communicate with area superintendents throughout the evening and early morning. We will always make a decision that is best for Papillion La Vista Community Schools, but if one school district in the metro cancels, generally all public schools in the metro cancel. There are exceptions, but since weather patterns don’t stop at school district boundaries, it makes sense that area school leaders discuss closings. Yes, I do wake up at the crack of dawn to drive our streets and check on snow removal. No, I don’t drive a monster truck! (haha).
It is my goal to communicate the decision as soon as possible, but in most cases, I prefer waiting until the morning. Snowfall projections are notoriously fickle, and we are blessed with outstanding snow removal crews, so we don’t want to cancel too early. We will always communicate on the District website, Facebook, and television. If you want to get a jump on the announcement, please follow me on Twitter @AndrewRikli. I typically post snow day cancellations there first. Students, a bit of good-natured complaining on social media is expected and occasionally funny, but please don’t be mean to my family or use profanity. We are better than that. Above all, #BeKind!
We will always make decisions with student safety as our top priority. I have three school-age children, and my wife and I both work outside the home. I certainly understand getting kids to school on bad weather days can be stressful. If you don’t feel safe sending your children to school because of inclement weather, please keep them home. Every day, parents drop off their children late and/or pick them up early for reasons ranging from athletic contests to dental appointments. We want to see regular school attendance, of course, but we also trust parents to make good decisions for their children.
I understand many families get upset when we don’t cancel school after snow or ice. We live in Nebraska where bad weather is a weekly — If not daily! — occurrence, but we don’t cancel school every time it snows. I suspect most parents understand this, but it bears repeating. Snow days create challenges for many families. Many students live in single parent households or in homes where both parents work. Cancelling school can create hardships for families who need daycare for their children. Some parents are forced to leave young children at home with little or no supervision because they can’t miss work. This too is a safety issue.
When bad weather is anticipated, I typically communicate with area superintendents throughout the evening and early morning. We will always make a decision that is best for Papillion La Vista Community Schools, but if one school district in the metro cancels, generally all public schools in the metro cancel. There are exceptions, but since weather patterns don’t stop at school district boundaries, it makes sense that area school leaders discuss closings. Yes, I do wake up at the crack of dawn to drive our streets and check on snow removal. No, I don’t drive a monster truck! (haha).
It is my goal to communicate the decision as soon as possible, but in most cases, I prefer waiting until the morning. Snowfall projections are notoriously fickle, and we are blessed with outstanding snow removal crews, so we don’t want to cancel too early. We will always communicate on the District website, Facebook, and television. If you want to get a jump on the announcement, please follow me on Twitter @AndrewRikli. I typically post snow day cancellations there first. Students, a bit of good-natured complaining on social media is expected and occasionally funny, but please don’t be mean to my family or use profanity. We are better than that. Above all, #BeKind!
rgrgr
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