To Cancel School or Not?

Cancel School or Not?

Cancelling school is one of the more difficult decisions a Superintendent must make.  The decision to delay, dismissal early or close schools due to inclement weather has an enormous effect on all of our families.  The following information may help you understand the process I use when making this important decision.

When inclement weather impacts the District, I make the decision to dismiss, delay or close schools based upon a careful analysis of the following factors:

1.       Information on road conditions from: law enforcement, our transportation director, our local road commissioners

2.       Amount of accumulated snow and/or ice, or the density of the fog

3.       Whether or not the precipitation/fog is predicted to continue throughout the day

4.       Temperature and wind chill

5.       Impact on our transportation (buses)

6.       Weather predictions from satellite system, local radar and National Weather service

7.       Storm/fog timing

8.       Discussions with area Superintendents beginning the prior evening and continuing again around 5 a.m.

There may be times that you believe we should have been cancelled or school should have been in session.   Unfortunately, due to size of our District (over 250 square miles), it is very difficult to determine when it is safe for school to be in session.  For example, if you live in Limestone conditions may be fine, but in Reddick they may be terrible.  The final decision on whether to cancel school or not is based upon the overall condition of the District.

If you do not feel it is safe for your child to get to school, use your best judgment as to whether he/she should attend.  Please call your respective school office and let them know.

Who makes the decision on whether to delay, dismiss early or cancel school?  As the Superintendent of the Herscher Community Unit School District, I am tasked with this responsibility.

When is the decision made?  I will make every attempt to cancel school by 6 a.m., so we can initiate the CALL ONE program, notify local radio stations, initiate our internal phone trees and notify the TV stations.  If a school day is delayed or dismissed early, the same contacts will be notified.

Will we close schools if conditions worsen (early dismissal)?  If weather conditions worsen I will be very reluctant to dismiss early.  If I send students (especially younger students) back home, some will return to empty houses.  Once students arrive at school, I feel the safest plan is to keep them at school until the end of the day.  However, there may be time we will dismiss early, in order to get students home before a storm worsens.  However, I am hoping that this will be a rare occasion.  If this does happen, we will utilize the CALL ONE system immediately to notify parents.

I hope this explanation helps you understand the process a Superintendent goes through when considering whether or not to cancel school.

Superintendent Message -- October

Superintendent’s Message -- October

After just a short time in the District, I have been amazed at the quality of instruction I see in the classrooms throughout the District.  Just as impressive is the eagerness of our students to learn.  I try to take every opportunity I can to spend as much time watching teachers and students in the classroom.

Education is undergoing a change throughout our state and country and Herscher District #2 is no exception.  In order to meet the challenges of the recent changes in teacher evaluation and the curriculum, we are exploring new models of evaluation and instruction.  This will require significant professional development for our teachers and administration as they work to provide a rigorous instructional program.

We are also continuing to expand our understanding of how students learn through their individual learning styles, so that we can differentiate our instructional practices (co-teaching and planning).  We are looking closely at our curriculum and our priorities for the future so we can:

n  Teach the most important skills and competencies and spend the appropriate time on each skill.

n  Teach the skills in a logical and sequential order (Common Core standards).

n  Assess students in order to determine weaknesses and strengths of both students and teachers (MAP testing).

We are also making a concerted effort towards improving technology in the District.  We have several schools in the District where teachers are utilizing iPads for instruction.  We are hoping to add even more of these instruments next year.  We are also hoping to get all schools in the District to have access to wireless technology by the end of the next school year.  Finally, we recently held a Technology Fair to help familiarize our faculty of all the various technology that can be used in the schools.

I am truly excited about our educational future and our commitment to excellence in the Herscher schools.  We are hoping to provide an enriching and challenging program that will continue to meets the needs of all of our students.