Wooster City Schools Releases Information on Calamity Days

As winter weather approaches, the Wooster City School District presents a Q & A form to help clarify the process and procedures of calamity days.

(DECEMBER 20, 2012) – The Wooster City School District has released a form to help give clarity to the district’s procedures on calamity days. The purpose of the communication is to offer answers to frequently asked questions and to remove any uncertainty regarding the district’s calamity day policy and procedures.

“Parents and students alike have general questions on where they can gather the latest information on school closings, and we wanted to provide a format that best answered their questions,” said Superintendent/CEO Dr. Michael Tefs. “As always, we are available to answer any questions that go beyond what we represented in this press release, but it should provide those concerned with the most prevalent information.”

The frequently asked questions provided by the district are as follows:

Question: How many calamity days are districts allowed this year?
Answer: The State of Ohio sets the number of calamity days for Ohio school districts. This year we have been allotted FIVE (5) calamity days.

Question: When is the decision to delay or cancel school made?
Answer: As early as possible. Usually, the decision to delay or cancel school will be made no later than 6:00 a.m.  In some cases, the decision may be made the night before, if weather conditions warrant. It is difficult to make decisions to delay or cancel school based upon a forecast alone.

Question: Where should parents check to see if school is canceled or delayed?
Answer: As soon as a decision is made, the information will appear almost immediately on the district's website, www.woostercityschools.org. Additionally, local television and radio stations will broadcast any school delays and cancellations, and the school district will call parents using the district's emergency and parent notification system.

Question: Is it possible school could be delayed due to weather?
Answer: Yes. The district may implement a one or two-hour delay depending upon weather conditions. It is important for parents to know that if a delay is announced, they need to continue to check the media and website for updated information. In scenarios where power does not get restored, a fog does not lift, or road conditions do not improve, delays may turn into closures. In the event of a delay, please stay tuned to your local media and the district's website as the delay may evolve into a closure.

Question: If the start of a school day must be delayed, how will the day run?
Answer: Whenever there is a delay due to inclement weather, the district's bus and school start time schedule will be pushed back the exact time of the actual delay from normal times. In the event of a two-hour delay:

• AM kindergarten and AM preschool will be canceled
• PM kindergarten and PM preschool bus routes will run at their normal times
• PM kindergarten students will attend class at the normal time, from 1:10 p.m. until 3:40 p.m.
• PM preschool students will attend class at the normal time, from 12:45 p.m. until 3:55 p.m.

Question: If school is delayed, what happens to scheduled extracurricular activities?
Answer: Extracurricular activities will proceed as scheduled if the district must use a delay due to weather, but please stay tuned to the district's website and local media for possible changes depending upon the opponent district's situation.

Question: If school is canceled, what happens to scheduled extracurricular activities?
Answer: If school is canceled because of inclement weather, there will be no practices or games at the middle school or freshman levels. No varsity practices will take place until after 1:00 p.m., contingent upon weather conditions and the forecast for the remainder of the day. Varsity coaches and the athletic director are responsible for the decision regarding practices. Decisions about varsity and junior varsity games on calamity days will be made in collaboration with the athletic directors and principals of the schools involved. Saturday extracurricular events also have the potential to be impacted by the weather. If we must cancel Saturday events, this information will be announced on the district's website and through the local media.

“Student safety is our number one priority and, in the event of inclement weather, we work quite strategically and diligently to keep our families and students well-informed of the decisions made to keep students safe by canceling or delaying classes.”