The frigid temperatures of this week leave little doubt that winter has arrived in Allen County. That being the case, transportation officials for Allen County Schools will be constantly monitoring the weather in the coming weeks and months.
Allen County School Transportation Director Roger
Weaver oversees a team of school officials that are charged with determining
whether snow and icy conditions are bad enough to recommend to Allen County
School Superintendent Randall Jackson that school doors be closed. The process
to determine whether school is canceled begins when ice, snow or freezing rain
is mentioned in the forecast.
“When
the forecast is calling for snow or ice, we have a team of people that get up
at three in the morning and start driving the roads,’ Weaver explained. “If
precipitation is forecasted or is falling, we look at the roads and radar, and then
contact Mr. Jackson and make a recommendation.”
Weaver
is quick to point out that the tough calls come when the forecast includes
winter weather but the precipitation has yet to arrive.
“It seems
like frozen precipitation often arrives about six in the morning,” Weaver
explained. “That’s when we have to look at how the weather is moving and what’s
happening in the direction that the weather’s coming from.”
Weaver
will network with transportation officials in other districts to get a better
understanding of the weather they are experiencing. Once roads, weather
conditions, and potential future conditions have been reviewed, a
recommendation is made to Superintendent Jackson. When the call is made to
close school---a decision that is typically made by 5:30 a.m.----the
notification process starts. The school messenger system sends a phone message
to the parents of each student as well as each staff member. The District also
continues to use the tried-and-true method of alerting local and area media
outlets who in turn make announcements. Notification is also made via the
District’s Twitter account.
Locally, WVLE and WLCK radio stations are notified
as well as the following TV stations; WBKO in Bowling Green and Nashville
stations WTVF, WSMV, WKRN, and WZTV.
When school is closed, the announcement will
also send notification to parents, students, and staff if the day will be
deemed a Nschool@home day---a day of non-traditional instruction. Students have
received information and packets about Nschool@home procedures and should
listen closely to school closing information.
In recent years, Allen County Schools has
updated policy to reflect the option of a one-hour or two-hour delay in the
start of the school day. This option would mean that the opening of school is delayed
allowing conditions to improve or officials to further monitor winter weather
conditions.
If the one or two-hour delay option is used, a one call will be sent out by or
before 5:30 a.m. to inform parents and district employees of the delay. The same
radio and televisions stations are also notified at or before 5:30. Since the
notification procedure is the same with a delay as with a school closure,
officials reminds parents that it’s important to listen closely to the message
from the school district.
Weaver also will make a recommendation if
wintery weather makes early dismissal a possibility. If the decision to dismiss
school early is made, the same notification policy---including one call---is
used to alert parents of the change.
A
third recommendation comes from Weaver on the decision to return to school
after being out due to winter weather. When classes are dismissed, the
transportation team spend afternoons driving roads and looking at various
factors. Many times, a decision as to whether or not to return to school can’t
be made till the next day. If closing school is obvious, an announcement is
made the night before. However, sometimes conditions can improve overnight,
meaning school resumes as normal. Parents and students are reminded that only
an announcement is made with the cancellation of classes. If school is
scheduled to be in session, school will be held unless an announcement to the
contrary is made.
Any parent who does not
receive one call from the school district can call the Allen County School
District at 270-618-3181 to be added to the one call list.