Even though the weather in our area looks nice for the foreseeable future, winter weather is right around the corner, and we want to remind our families of our inclement weather procedures.
Oskaloosa School District schools will be open on all regularly scheduled school days unless circumstances create health or safety issues. However, weather conditions can vary greatly in different neighborhoods and on different streets. We encourage parents to make attendance decisions for their children based on their specific ability to get to school safely.
Additionally, if your contact information has recently changed, please contact the District Registrar at cglenn@usd341.org or call 785-863-2539 X-129. This will enable the school and/or the district to notify you in the event of a closure or early release. If you are not notified by the designated channels listed below, you can safely assume your school is open. If you are concerned about your child’s ability to travel to school safely, please exercise your parental discretion to make the best decision for your child.
Here are some general philosophies regarding school closure decisions:
We will use weather forecasts, radar, personal reconnaissance, and consensus of surrounding districts in the decision-making process.
Safety is our top priority so when in doubt, we try to err on the side of caution.
We will make the decision as soon as possible to give families a better chance to plan. We will not comment on the likelihood of canceling school in advance of the decision.
After the decision to cancel school is made, we will sometimes send a follow-up email explaining the factors involved. We will not typically send notices that school will be open as scheduled.
METHODS OF NOTIFICATION
Thrillshare: We will send it out through our Thrillshare communication system. That could include Text, Voice Call, and Email. This depends on your settings and information.
School Website: We will post on our Live Feed on the Website when the cancelation is called.
Social Media: We will share cancellations through our district Facebook account.
Media: We will air our closing announcements on WIBW TV 13, KSNT TV 27, KTMJ Fox 43, KCTV 5 Kansas City, as well as radio stations: 1320 AM KLWN, KAIR 93.7, 105.9 FM, 101.7 FM, 92.9 FM, and Kansas Public Radio.
COLD WEATHER CANCELLATIONS
Cold weather can prevent our diesel buses from operating properly and endanger students.
In preparation for cold weather cancellations, the National Weather Service (NWS) has a very helpful wind chill and frostbite graph, which you can see here: https://www.weather.gov/safety/cold-wind-chill-chart
To err on the side of caution as promised, we will use a wind chill temperature of negative 15 degrees Fahrenheit as the cut-off point for canceling school. For your convenience, the decision will be made the night before using the 7:00 a.m. NWS forecast located at this site:
http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=39.2482&lon=-94.8875&unit=0&lg=english&FcstType=graphical
CONTINGENCY PLANS
For your convenience, we will not delay the start of school. We will avoid dismissing school early whenever possible, but circumstances may require it, so please plan for that contingency.
The decision to cancel school must be made by 6:00 a.m. Conditions may worsen between then and the start of school. If so, we cannot reverse the decision without endangering students because buses and many parents will have already departed. Therefore, if conditions worsen after 6:00 a.m., you will need to use your best judgment as to whether or not to send students to school.
Parents always have the option to excuse an absence due to inclement weather or local road conditions.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Thank you.
Dan Wessel
Superintendent
USD 341