Community Corner

Updated: Mixed Weather Delays Decision to Cancel STMA Schools April 11

ISD 885 Superintendent on the April 11 weather related school closure: "In addition to the delay in closing school, the auto dialer was not working initially and delayed notification."

Weather conditions throughout the St. Michael-Albertville area prompted a closure of the .

A message on the ISD 885 website Thursday morning notified parents of the closure, also stating, “If your child tells the driver that there is no parent at home, the driver will take your child to school.”

A decision as to whether to have school or not is made between 5 to 5:30 a.m., according to an email Patch received from Superintendent James Behle.

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“At that time, there was little snow. The forecast was for snow but not heavy snow until mid-morning and then to stop by noon” he wrote about the April 11 school day, stating the decision was made to have school.

“As the buses started their first routes, the snow intensity significantly changed and I made the decision to close school. In addition to the delay in closing school, the auto dialer was not working initially and delayed notification,” Superintendent Behle wrote to St. Michael Patch in an email.

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Buses had started to pick up students, according to Behle, with some students returned home and others brought to school.

“In the future, all students already on buses should have been brought to school,” he wrote, stating decisions to cancel school are made with “best information” available at the time.

Community members reacted to the school closure Thursday on the St. Michael Patch Facebook page with more than 100 comments with the two hours of school closure announcement.

Weather conditions around the St. Michael-Albertville area have also been responsible for several vehicle off road calls and minor property damage accidents Thursday morning, according to Capt. Greg Howell with the Wright County Sheriff's Office.   

As of approximately 10 a.m. April 11, about six inches of new snow has fallen in the community. 

Updated 2 p.m. April 11, 2013 (below)

The following email communication was sent out to parents from the St. Michael-Albertville School District around 1 p.m. Thursday. 

Greetings,

This morning school was cancelled late.  I know that the lateness of the decision and notification was confusing and created concern and difficulty especially for students who were on buses.  Safety is a priority but I know that we did not meet the standard expected this morning.  I regret how the decision affected students, families and staff.

Some have asked how I make the decision.  I make a decision on weather and school between 5:00 and 5:30 using weather forecast from multiple sources, driving local roads and bus routes, and consulting with our transportation contractor.  Specifically, this morning there was little snow at the time, and weather forecasters were changing the forecast to less snow.  Heavier snow falls were to occur mid-morning after students would be at school with snow stopping by noon.  Obviously, heavy snow fell earlier and winds started as buses began routes.  While I recognized that it is not ideal to make such a late decision, I felt at the time based upon reports from bus drivers and my own driving that it was unsafe to continue routes.

The decision was late but notification was later than anticipated as not all personnel were available to assist and the auto dialer malfunctioned for a short period of time.

While some students who were on buses were brought to school, others were returned to home.  In the future, while I want to avoid such a late decision, all students on buses will be brought to school and parents notified.

Regardless of the circumstances, I want to assure you that we take your feedback and concerns seriously and have already addressed those issues and will continue to do so in the future.

Again, I regret how the decisions affected students, families and staff and want to meet all of our expectations for student safety and family communication.

 

Respectfully,

Jim Behle

Superintendent

 

 


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