By KYLE ODEGARD
Gazette-Times reporter | Posted: Wednesday, December 17, 2008 12:00 am
Philomath, Monroe and Alsea schools were closed due to frosty weather and snow for the third day in a row on Wednesday, and it looks like they won't be in session the rest of the week, administrators said.
"Things don't look promising right now," said Jon St. Germaine, Alsea schools superintendent.
"(Highway) 99 right in front of my office is solid snow and ice," said Randy Crowson, Monroe schools superintendent. Secondary roads in the countryside were even worse. "You could get a car up them, but you wouldn't dare take a bus."
With another storm, routes might not be passable, he said.
Philomath and Alsea schools initially planned to hold school two hours late on Wednesday, but administrators reconsidered in the morning because of snow that started falling heavily in the Coast Range.
"I was working with the Kings Valley and the Blodgett area, some parents out there, and they said, 'Hey, we can't even get out of the driveway,'" said Pete Tuana, Philomath schools superintendent. "We had buses on the road, and we pulled them back."
Tuana and St. Germaine said they'd need to talk with their school boards about how to make up for potentially a week of missed classroom time.
"The easiest fix is to extend the school year a week," Tuana said. "You really want to sit down and evaluate and consider your options." He added that the district was more concerned with the weather right now.
Crowson said Monroe has some flexibility built into the schedule, but in-service days might become school days for students. He didn't want to extend the academic year, he said, because families often plan ahead for graduation and vacations.
St. Germaine said he felt bad for parents, because the school closures were putting pressure on mothers and fathers who have to work.
He added that school holiday programs and traditional parties, which even high school and middle school students participated in, may be cancelled along with school.
"It's kind of frustrating, disappointing," St. Germaine said.