Invariably, whenever we have the threat of inclement weather, there are many decisions that need to be made. The variables that go into the decision to delay, close, or send students home early is never an easy one and is a process I take very seriously.
With the threat of bad weather that could affect the opening of school, I get up at 4:45 am and look outside. Then I get on the Weather Channel, Channel 69-WFMZ and the Internet. I start making calls to the Oxford DPW, the Warren Hills Cluster schools, the WTPD and, as in the case of the last storm Friday, the county DPW. I also get phone alerts from the NJ Office of Emergency Management and the NJ State Police that provide further information. I try to come to a decision that will allow for the greatest level of safety for our students and their parents, and of course our staff as well. This is all done with a number of phone calls, and then quite possibly, a sprinkling of luck that the decision was the right one. Had we opened last Friday at 10:30, staff would have been on the roads in the worst of the storm. The website, Weather Underground estimates Warren County got about 2.5 inches from 8:30-10:30 am. I spoke to a number of school leaders in our area and they reported that they only had 30-40% of their students in the building and had to double and triple up on rooms, since staff could not get to work safely.
This time I got it right again!
Till next time...
No comments:
Post a Comment