Traffic concerns drive schools' decisions tp close
Long delays expected; peak eclipse viewing is at end of school day.
The U.S. won’t see another total solar eclipse on this scale until 2045, so NASA and everyone else is pulling out all the stops.
School district administrators who have announced closures on April 8, the day a total solar eclipse will be seen in the Dayton region, cited traffic concerns as the No. 1 reason they chose to keep students out of school that day.
Centerville, Dayton, Kettering, Fairborn and Beavercreek are among districts to be closed to students on the day of the solar eclipse. Some school districts are still requiring teachers to come in for a professional development (training) day, while others are closed entirely.
“The county is concerned about traffic congestion due to travelers who wish to view, and the potential for a strain on local resources,” said Pam Gayheart, spokeswoman for Fairborn schools, on the decision to close.
The “totality” portion of the eclipse will be in the Dayton area around 3:10 p.m., a time when many students would be walking home, riding school buses or being picked up. Kettering Superintendent Mindy McCarty-Stewart said the district anticipated long delays in families picking up Kettering students if they had stayed open.
“In the interest of safety and in light (pun intended!) of the three-to four-hour delays that are being projected for bus runs and parents/guardians who would be picking their children up from school during the eclipse, we have made the decision to close school and designate April 8 as a ‘calamity day’ for KCS students and staff,” McCarty-Stewart said in a Jan. 26 letter to parents.
Ethan Raby, director of the emergency management agency for Greene County, said his agency made a recommendation to Greene County schools to close that day primarily because of traffic concerns.
Raby said he couldn’t give an exact number for the increase of traffic expected, but he said reports from the 2017 eclipse in parts of Wyoming and Tennessee showed traffic tripled or quadrupled in areas where the eclipse could be seen.
“If you’re driving on I-70, I-75, or 675, or (Ohio) 35 as an alternative to 70, that could be impacted,” Raby said.
He suggested people not schedule important medical appointments for April 8, try to have gas and food so they don’t need to go to the store and get needed medication beforehand if possible.
“This is definitely on a scope that is different than what we have experienced in the area,” Raby said. “There’s still a lot of unknowns, and we’re simply trying to plan for the best possible outcome.”
There was also concern about having students on buses, where they might look directly at the sun and damage their eyesight. “A solar eclipse can cause vision damage, and so you need to be sure to wear ... proper solar viewing glasses,” Raby said.
Some districts said they considered letting students out earlier or holding them later. “I couldn’t imagine the logistics of keeping students late and then getting them home without serving a meal and dealing with other issues such as commitments that students may have outside of school,” said Michael Sander, Franklin City Schools superintendent.
Franklin schools will be closed on eclipse day, Sander said in an email.
Jason Enix, superintendent for Huber Heights City Schools, said employee contracts and concerns about traffic factored into the district’s decision to make April 8 a professional development day.
School districts generally aren’t doing their own activities during the eclipse, but many have encouraged teachers to talk about the eclipse the week before, and some have referred families to programs in the area.
“We appreciate our school community’s understanding as we work collaboratively with local authorities to keep everyone as safe as possible during the eclipse,” said Centerville Superintendent Jon Wesney. “We hope families will take advantage of learning opportunities that will be offered throughout the area on April 8. ... ”
A Wall Street Journal story from 2017, just before the last solar eclipse that could be seen from much of the U.S., said some schools closed due to insurance companies’ concerns about lawsuits. The Dayton Daily News filed a records request for any emails that superintendents or business managers from 10 districts had sent to insurance companies about next week’s eclipse. Eight districts said they had no responsive records and two districts were not able to respond by deadline.