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Choosing to delay or cancel school is definitely not a decision SPS makes lightly. We need to carefully weigh lots of factors and often changeable winter conditions – including student and staff safety, road conditions, and what a delay or closure would mean to the students and families that rely on the services our district provides.
Here is some information on the process for making these decisions: Starting the night before a major snow event, district leaders consult with City of Spokane officials, Zum, and Spokane Transit Authority. Beginning at about 3AM, SPS drivers are out monitoring road and sidewalk conditions. Additionally, school administrators and maintenance staff survey areas immediately surrounding school buildings.
Our inclement weather team meets at 4:30AM to decide with the goal of communicating conclusions to delay or close school to staff and families as soon as possible - by between 5:30 and 6AM. If nothing is communicated by 6AM, everyone can safely assume the regular school schedule is unchanged.
Throughout this, we keep in mind that schools provide a warm, supervised environment where students can eat breakfast and lunch. In many families, both parents and/or guardians work outside the home, and several hundred of our students are experiencing homelessness. For hundreds of SPS students, school is the safest place to be during inclement weather.
All that said, families are always encouraged to consider the conditions of their neighborhood and the well-being of their students in deciding whether to keep their student home. If interested, a video and more details about our process can be found at spokaneschools.org/weather.
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