Flagstaff Unified School District

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SNOW PREPAREDNESS

About Delays & Cancellations . . .

SAFETY TRUMPS CONVENIENCE IN DECISIONS

The decision to cancel or delay the start of school is a difficult one for the people who decide whether or not conditions are too severe to hold classes.  No matter how they call it, somebody will always say they were wrong.

If they call off school at 5 a.m. and the weather improves, they are taken to task by parents who have to make alternative arrangements for their children.  But the far more worrisome situation would be to allow buses to run on icy roads and put children at risk.  Much better to err on the side of caution and be criticized than to take a chance and have an accident.

Of course kids love it when school is canceled, but adults hate it.  Parents have to find sitters.  Teachers have to crowd more curriculum into fewer days.  Events and meetings have to be rescheduled.  It is a huge pain.

Either way, the decision is not made lightly.  Transportation staff, bus drivers and District Office administrators are on the roads by 4 a.m. on any day that severe weather is expected.  They may be anticipating heavy snow or freezing rain that will make driving dangerous.  Schools have been closed on rare occasions when there has been no snow, but extreme low temperatures or high winds would put kids at risk waiting at bus stops even though bus drivers would have no problem negotiating the roads.

The team checking road conditions compares notes from all over the district.  The people who question a decision to have school or not often are not aware that the district covers 4,500 square miles, and weather conditions in Leupp may be very different from those in Munds Park or Swiss Manor.  Not to mention how fast the weather changes around here.  Conditions at 5 a.m. may be a dim memory three hours later.

Whatever is decided, it is decided with one consideration in mind:  Is it safe for kids to be on the roads?  The superintendent and the staff who advise him are certainly aware of the inconvenience a cancellation causes, but they cannot allow that concern to take precedence.

Though complaints may follow decisions to cancel school when the weather later improves, an equal number of calls can be expected if schools are kept open and the roads get worse.  Parents who feel conditions in their neighborhood are too dangerous for their children to travel should be aware that they may decide themselves to keep their children at home.  As long as school staff is told why the student stayed home, he or she will not be penalized for being absent.

Another point that cannot be made too often is that children are far safer on a school bus when the roads are slick than they are in the family car.  Buses are more visible, have better traction and are equipped with dual wheels and chains.  Parents who drive their children to school who could ride a bus on snowy days not only put their own children at greater risk, but may endanger others by causing unnecessary traffic congestion around schools.

Of course much of the disruption of schedules when schools are closed has to do with arranging child care on short notice.  The District has tried to help by keeping the FACTS center open when schools are closed.

Anybody who would like more information about the FACTS Program should call 527-6180, 527-6168 or visit the FACTS Website.

Alternatively, FUSD implements a shortened DELAYED START SCHEDULE when weather and road conditions make it the safest course of action for all students.  

This special schedule was developed by FUSD to help cope with winter weather and to avoid unnecessary cancellation of school.  The DELAYED START SCHEDULE allows students walking, driving and riding buses to avoid hazardous traffic conditions.  And, it allows more time for City road crews to plow and cinder streets.

On days when the DELAYED START SCHEDULE is in effect, classes begin and buses run 2 hours later than normal.  Morning Kindergarten and Preschool Classes will be canceled when 2-hour delay is in effect.  Afternoon dismissal times and bus schedules are the same are regular school days.

revised 2-1-08