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School's out!
by diane vance /gate city staff writer
Christmas and the first weeks of January gave the Tri-States a break from harsh weather, but cold temperatures and snow earlier in December reminded everyone it is winter.
Predicting weather is not an exact science, so school personnel are called upon to use observation and road tests to determine when to cancel school for bad weather, call for a delayed start or decide on an early out.
In the Keokuk School District, Transportation Supervisor Allen Caudill and Superintendent Jane Babcock consult.
“We watch the weather and Alan goes out and drives the roads,” said Babcock. “He drives the most hazardous roads in two-wheel drive to test them. If he has to shift into four-wheel drive, we cancel school.”
Every instance is different, Babcock said.
“If we hear a storm is coming, we don't automatically cancel or let out early,” she said. “It might go around us. We base our actions on the best information we can get. We talk to adjoining school districts. The bottom line is to have the kids in school. Each weather cancellation, delay or early out really depends on the circumstances of the day.”
Central Lee
Central Lee School District, located north of Keokuk, uses the same combination of transportation director, Kim Ensminger, and Superintendent Chuck Reighard in the decision-making process.
“We drive the roads,” said Ensminger. “I live south of Donnellson and Mr. Reighard lives north of Donnellson. I set my alarm for 5 a.m. Wednesday and got out and drove the streets because when I went to bed Tuesday, I knew the weather was bad.”
Central Lee, roughly 200-square miles in area, has many miles of gravel and secondary blacktop roads to consider.
“We like to make a decision by 6 a.m., then we contact the radio and TV stations,” said Ensminger. “If the roads are too hazardous - and we consider the buses, our student and staff drivers - we make a call.”
Some days fog causes a problem with visibility. A delay in starting school can give fog time to burn-off or snowy streets to be cleared by county highway workers.
“Morning delays throw off breakfast,” she said. “If it's a two-hour delay, we don't serve breakfast or hold morning preschool.
“Early-outs we like to call by noon or 1 p.m. They cause the most disruption. The elementary school gets flooded with calls because younger students need to go to a different after school home when parents are at work.”
Clark County
Superintendent Randy Sheriff in Clark County, Mo., takes full responsibility for weather/school decisions.
“We never call a morning delay,” he said. “We prefer the buses to be on the roads when our patrons expect them. It's more of a burden to find child care in the morning if parents have already left for work.”
Clark County R-1 School District covers 308 square miles and includes a large rural area.
“Sometimes I drive the roads to learn the conditions,” he said. “I listen to the forecast.”
Missouri law says students must attend school 174 days in a year, go to classes 1,044 hours and have three hours of instructional time in a day for the day to be counted.
“Those limits have to be met independently,” said Sheriff. “If we have school 8:30 a.m. and dismiss at 11:30 a.m., the hours count toward the 1,044, but the day doesn't count because we would have had lunch in there, and it wouldn't be three instructional hours.”
Next, Hamilton and Warsaw school districts discuss weather cancellations.
Predicting weather is not an exact science, so school personnel are called upon to use observation and road tests to determine when to cancel school for bad weather, call for a delayed start or decide on an early out.
In the Keokuk School District, Transportation Supervisor Allen Caudill and Superintendent Jane Babcock consult.
“We watch the weather and Alan goes out and drives the roads,” said Babcock. “He drives the most hazardous roads in two-wheel drive to test them. If he has to shift into four-wheel drive, we cancel school.”
Every instance is different, Babcock said.
“If we hear a storm is coming, we don't automatically cancel or let out early,” she said. “It might go around us. We base our actions on the best information we can get. We talk to adjoining school districts. The bottom line is to have the kids in school. Each weather cancellation, delay or early out really depends on the circumstances of the day.”
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Central Lee School District, located north of Keokuk, uses the same combination of transportation director, Kim Ensminger, and Superintendent Chuck Reighard in the decision-making process.
“We drive the roads,” said Ensminger. “I live south of Donnellson and Mr. Reighard lives north of Donnellson. I set my alarm for 5 a.m. Wednesday and got out and drove the streets because when I went to bed Tuesday, I knew the weather was bad.”
Central Lee, roughly 200-square miles in area, has many miles of gravel and secondary blacktop roads to consider.
“We like to make a decision by 6 a.m., then we contact the radio and TV stations,” said Ensminger. “If the roads are too hazardous - and we consider the buses, our student and staff drivers - we make a call.”
Some days fog causes a problem with visibility. A delay in starting school can give fog time to burn-off or snowy streets to be cleared by county highway workers.
“Morning delays throw off breakfast,” she said. “If it's a two-hour delay, we don't serve breakfast or hold morning preschool.
“Early-outs we like to call by noon or 1 p.m. They cause the most disruption. The elementary school gets flooded with calls because younger students need to go to a different after school home when parents are at work.”
Clark County
Superintendent Randy Sheriff in Clark County, Mo., takes full responsibility for weather/school decisions.
“We never call a morning delay,” he said. “We prefer the buses to be on the roads when our patrons expect them. It's more of a burden to find child care in the morning if parents have already left for work.”
Clark County R-1 School District covers 308 square miles and includes a large rural area.
“Sometimes I drive the roads to learn the conditions,” he said. “I listen to the forecast.”
Missouri law says students must attend school 174 days in a year, go to classes 1,044 hours and have three hours of instructional time in a day for the day to be counted.
“Those limits have to be met independently,” said Sheriff. “If we have school 8:30 a.m. and dismiss at 11:30 a.m., the hours count toward the 1,044, but the day doesn't count because we would have had lunch in there, and it wouldn't be three instructional hours.”
Next, Hamilton and Warsaw school districts discuss weather cancellations.
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