MORGANTOWN — Wednesday’s snow day for Monongalia County Schools was one of the earlier weather calls for the season in recent history, Donna Talerico said.
“We haven’t had one here in November in years,” the assistant schools superintendent said. “That’s always reserved for January.”
Tuesday’s spate of snow and falling temperatures iced up the proceedings, and a couple of school buses skidded off roadways on the ride home. No students were hurt.
When Wednesday dawned no better than Tuesday, the decision was made to cancel school, Talerico said.
“We’re always going to be thinking about safety for our youngsters, our teachers and our service people,” she said.
Wednesday’s call means the district still has four more snow days it can use, she said.
There are also, she reminded, an additional five “Arctic Academy and Beyond” days factored into the calendar.
Those are considered school days, Talerico said, even on the days students can’t get to school.
The difference between a snow day and an Arctic Academy Day?
Pavement.
Academy days are reserved for the especially raw mornings with negative wind-chill factors, she said.
Those are also the days when a teacher can safely drive to school — while students work through Arctic Academy assignments safely snug at home.
The district created the inclement weather delivery system to keep the learning on the road, on the frosty days when Mother Nature cancels class.
Students delve into lessons pre-loaded on their school-issued Google Chromebooks, Talerico said.
Each assignment, which is supplemental to what happens in class and doesn’t require an internet connection, takes around 20 minutes to complete.
If students get stuck, their teachers, who are stationed in their classrooms at school, are a telephone call or email-click away.
“That way, our kids don’t lose anything,” she said.
A total of 8,000 Chromebooks were issued to Mon’s students from second grade to their senior year.
And nationally, more than 25 million students use the devices as part of their classwork, Google reports.
“It’s just the digital way things are done now,” said Talerico, who began her career in education as an elementary school teacher.
AccuWeather, meanwhile, is calling for highs of 40 today, with no snow.
Rain, though, will follow Friday’s 49-degree temperatures. The rain will carry through the weekend, the forecasters said, with soggy highs of 58 and 63, on Saturday and Sunday.
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