Each year, with the arrival of winter, we receive a number of questions regarding our District’s policy for closing school due to inclement weather conditions. We understand that the decision to close schools has an enormous impact on all of our families. The District makes a great effort to make the final determination about whether or not to close the schools sometime between 5:30 – 6:00 a.m. In some circumstances, the decision can be made further in advance (i.e. the night before), but most often a final decision comes in the early morning hours on the day of the closure. There are several factors that are taken into account during the process of making the decision including road conditions, building and grounds condition, air temperature, and weather forecasts.
When severe weather exists, we typically begin monitoring the situation at 4:00 a.m. with District personnel on-site to assess the condition of both roads and facilities. When road conditions are less than ideal, District personnel are in direct communication with local safety forces and local road crews to determine whether buses can travel safely on our local roads. In most instances, if roads are deemed safe for travel by our fleet of buses, school will be in session for Olmsted Falls School District.
In regard to cold weather or wind chill, please keep in mind that one variable that differentiates Olmsted Falls School District from neighboring districts (such as Berea, Fairview Park, North Olmsted and Strongsville) is that our District provides transportation services for all of its students and does not have a walking zone for students, like many of the surrounding communities. Because of this level of transportation service, there may be times when Olmsted Falls School District is able to remain open while other surrounding districts are forced to close. However, extremely cold temperatures / wind chill will force closure for our District at times to ensure the health and safety of students and staff.
Please note that a delayed start is not typically an option in our district for several reasons - we provide out of district transportation to parochial schools, we have a ½ day kindergarten program, and so on.
NOTIFICATIONS
Olmsted Falls School District utilizes a voice/text/email alert system (Power Announcement) to notify parents and staff of school closures. Parents can adjust setting and opt-in to receive text messaging by logging into their PowerSchool parent accounts and then clicking the "Power Announcement" link located on the left side of the screen.
Olmsted Falls School District also posts school closure information on the District website and blog, as well as notifies local media outlets. There are several local media outlets that also provide free text alert service including WKYC Channel 3, WEWS NewsNet Channel 5 and Fox 8 Cleveland.
Ultimately, the decision on whether to send your child to school is your own. We do ask that you notify your child’s school building as you normally would if he/she will not be in attendance on a day that school is in session.