MESSAGE FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT
Many school districts around the state are grappling with questions about what to do on days where we have snow and ice. Do we continue to have snow days, or can districts offer a full day of remote instruction? It is a fair question without simple answers.
In order to count a remote day as a full school day, districts have to guarantee that all students have full access to the learning that day. When we have snow and ice, some families that live in the more rural regions of the district lose power or do not have reliable internet. Additionally, many of our teachers live in areas without reliable internet and would not be able to come to school to conduct remote lessons. In both scenarios, many students would not get access to instruction and assignments for the day. We can't allow that to happen.
For these reasons, we will continue to have snow days due to inclement weather. If we have to close, the day will be added back into the calendar later in the year.
The
following information is for reference in the event that the schools are
closed/delayed/released early due to inclement weather or other
emergencies. IF NO ANNOUNCEMENT IS MADE, SCHOOLS AND BUSES WILL BE
OPERATING ON REGULAR SCHEDULES. The district will make every attempt to
reach a decision on school closures or delays by 6:00am. When weather
or other emergency conditions dictate the closure or delayed start of
our schools, information will be provided via our phone notification
system and Seattle TV (KOMO, KING, KIRO and KCPQ) and local radio
stations KXXO (MIXX 96.1FM), KGY (1240AM or 96.9FM), KITI (1420AM 95.3 or
95.1FM), (KMAS 1030 AM or103.3) and KELA (1470AM or KMNT 104.3FM).
PLEASE TUNE YOUR RADIO/TV TO ONE OF THE ABOVE STATIONS AND LISTEN UNTIL YOU HEAR THE ANNOUNCEMENT. Please do not telephone radio or television stations for this information.
School Closure:
When a school is closed all day, any school activities and community
events scheduled on that school campus are generally cancelled.
Two-hour delay:
All schools will open late. Although buses will start their
run later than usual, road conditions may cause delays.
Limited transportation will be announced if road conditions cause
restrictions in designated areas. If school is open, but you think it
would be a danger or hardship for your child to go, school officials
will accept your judgment. (It will be treated as an excused absence.)
- Breakfast: If school is delayed during remote or hybrid learning, breakfast will be served for that day.
- Special Education Pre-School: If school is delayed, there will be no AM preschool, but there will be afternnon special education pre-school.
- New Market Skills Center: No transportation will be provided.
Snow Routes:
Weather conditions make it necessary to modify bus routes, and when
that occurs, radio and TV stations will be asked to announce the use of
“snow routes” or “emergency routes.”
Early Release:
The District will make every effort to operate normally, despite the
weather. On rare occasions, however, weather conditions may require
schools to be closed early. In that event, the normal busing sequence
will be followed, that is, taking the RPS and GMES students home first,
followed by RMS and RHS students approximately 1 to 2 hours later.
Information about early school closures will be provided via our phone
notification system and the TV and radio stations listed above.
Parents/guardians should plan for adequate home supervision in the event
that unscheduled early dismissal of students is necessary. Parents
are also asked to remind students to be especially careful when walking
or waiting for a bus during bad weather.
FlashAlert.net Notification Service: The
Rochester School District has subscribed to an Internet-based system
for delivering changes in schedule (such as delays or closures) to the
news media.
Message
delivery is being extended directly to the public through a system
called FlashAlert. You are now able to self-register and manage up to
three home or office email and/or cell phones and receive emergency
information just minutes after the school district posts it, at no cost
to you.
- Go to www.FlashAlert.net
- On the top menu bar, select “Manage Your Messenger Subscription” http://www.flashalert.net/
- You may either update your current account, or click on “Create New Account: Click here”
- Enter your primary email address, and create a password
- Select the region of Seattle/Western Wash.
- Type Rochester in the search box and click search.
- Click on the search result Rochester SD.
- Type the primary email address for this account and click subscribe.
- Re-enter the address and password, then Create your Account.
- Manage Your Email/Cell Messages:
- Check the
primary email address again.If you want push notifications on your cell
phone you will need to download the app from Google Play or the iTunes
App Store (search for Flash Alert Messenger). Directions for this part
are in the “My Linked Phones Apps” then click on “Learn more about the Messenger App here.”
It is
everyone’s hope that weather conditions will not disrupt transportation
and schools. Our most critical concern, however, is the safety and
welfare of our students.