Virtual classes will give way to real-life snow days
With a major snow storm moving into Delaware County, a number of county school districts are making plans to go all-virtual and even close ahead of time.
Radnor, Garnet Valley, and Haverford, normally in hybrid mode this week, all alerted parents and students that Wednesday would be an all-virtual day of learning.
In the Upper Darby, which is presently allv ir tual, Superintendent Dan McGarry said staff will work from home on Wednesday and there will be no transportation for private schools.
As for Thursday McGarry said at the monthly board meeting Tuesday evening that he was torn whether the district would in class but after attending a event Monday evening some young students helped convince him of the importance of snow days.
“Thursday will be a good old-fashioned snow day.” Said McGarry. “No school.”
Officials in Upper Darby reported as of January the district has the option of replacing the traditional noschool snow days with athome virtual learning days up to five days as per our state-approved flexible instruction day application.
Due to the impending storm, the Chester Upland School District’s non-public schools, private, parochial and charter schools will operate on a half day schedule for Wednesday.
Garnet Valley Superintendent Dr. Marc Bertrando said in addition to Wednes
day, all schools will remain in an all-virtual format through to the winter break due to continued COVID-19 cases being reported by the Chester County Department of Health.
In a letter to parents, Bertrando said he feels like an air traffic controller who has multiple planes trying to land on the same runway at the same time as he deals with the many factors that are impacting district in the last few days.
As for Thursday, students will be off from any school format in Garnet Valley. Bertrando said he recognizes that the first snow is a special occasion, especially when it falls during the holiday season. They are using one of three snow days that are built into their calendar to provide our children a reprieve from the disruptions and restrictions that COVID has brought to their lives so that they can get away from the screens and enjoy some fun outside, Bertrando said.
He noted a snow day during virtual learning may sound counterintuitive.
“How much more can we possibly impose on our kids?” he asked. “One day over the nine months of this pandemic, we believe, is a worthwhile accommodation. Finally, we need to acknowledge that our school community also needs consistency, and we believe that our plan meets these factors as well as possible given the known and unknown challenges that currently exist.”
“I believe fun has been sorely missed by our kids, and we need to find a way to provide it – albeit with all of the appropriate health precautions,” Bertrando said. “Additionally, with the amount of forecasted snow, we wanted to guard against power outages, network issues, etc.”
The district will reopen on Monday, Jan. 4, in hybrid learning, as the 14-day rolling period for positive case counts, mandated by the
Departments of Health and Education, will reset at zero.
In Radnor, a decision on Thursday will be made depending on weather conditions and communicated to staff and families on Dec. 16.
Haverford reported their transportation department will not be undertaking any runs on Wednesday. Superintendent Maureen Reusche sent a notice to parents that they will make decisions the day/night before based on the forecast to allow our families, teachers, and staff more time to adjust.
“Making decisions based on forecasts that may never materialize can prove to be frustrating and disruptive for all of us. In a pre-COVID world, we would not be making any decision until we actually saw the snow and had a stronger sense of its potential impact,” Reusche said. “However, deciding at 5 a.m. does not allow enough time for our families and teachers to prepare for a day of virtual learning. Deciding in advance enables us to preserve inclement weather days and continue student learning no matter how the storm actually materializes.”
Reusche said a snow day is possible Thursday.
“We are fortunate that we have access to the devices and web tools that make virtual learning possible. However, we also recognize that a traditional snow day could provide a welcome break for our students, staff, and community,” Reusche said. “It will depend upon the most updated forecast. It’s possible that we will hold another virtual day or experience a good old-fashioned snow day. I know what I am hoping for!”