Thank you to everyone for your patience this morning. I won't make any excuses regarding the late decision this morning. Certainly not a position I wanted to put our children, parents, and bus drivers in this morning. During the 4:15 a.m. National Weather Center conference call this morning there was little to no risk of ice and were calling for 1-3 inches of dry snow starting at 7:30 a.m. So it is with Missouri weather. I offer my apologies for the late decision and the confusion and inconvenience it caused.
As for details related to school today...
Since elementary students were already on the bus, the decision was made to go ahead and deliver our K-5 kids to the elementary schools to ensure their safety. If parents want to pick their child up because they don't want them to ride the bus home, or if they want to drop their child off at school later that is fine. All absences or tardies today will be excused. The absences must be documented for record keeping purposes but WILL NOT count towards perfect attendance or towards any violation of the district's attendance policy.
The middle schools and high schools are closed today.
I want to thank our outstanding transportation department for a job well done. Under challenging conditions, all children have been delivered safely to their destinations and all buses have safely returned to the bus garage.
I apologize for any undue stress my decision may have caused this morning, but I'm thankful all of our children are safe and accounted for.
Since elementary students were already on the bus, the decision was made to go ahead and deliver our K-5 kids to the elementary schools to ensure their safety. If parents want to pick their child up because they don't want them to ride the bus home, or if they want to drop their child off at school later that is fine. All absences or tardies today will be excused. The absences must be documented for record keeping purposes but WILL NOT count towards perfect attendance or towards any violation of the district's attendance policy.
The middle schools and high schools are closed today.
I want to thank our outstanding transportation department for a job well done. Under challenging conditions, all children have been delivered safely to their destinations and all buses have safely returned to the bus garage.
I apologize for any undue stress my decision may have caused this morning, but I'm thankful all of our children are safe and accounted for.
We are all thankful the children are safe, so far as we know. And we are always thankful for our bus drivers. They are underpaid and unappreciated on a daily basis. Their value shines through on a day like this.
ReplyDeleteNow we will pray that the staff members who had already arrived at work can get home safely, as well. I hope my spouse makes it home safe and sound from this situation. Staff members are important, too.
I think I saw a crowd of angry parents bearing pitchforks gathering up at the watering hole while I slid by. Huff better head for the hills. Arbor Hills, that is, the land of cement ponds and gracious living for highly paid leeches of tax dollars.
ReplyDeleteThose poor elementary staff members! It is obvious that their safety is of no concern to him.
ReplyDeleteYes, so thankful for those bus drivers. The same ones you cheated of five days of work this year and will next, and the very same people you try to keep from having full-time status. Thank God for them, right CJ? And the cooks and custodians who were already long since at work in every building. Cut their days and hours, too. You have shown the classified staff the back of your hand way too many times, as well as let them be bullied by your administration team. Your true appreciation of all employees is duly noted. Shame on you, sir, shame on you.
ReplyDeleteWow! I understand if you have past issues with the often confusing way that Joplin goes about its business, but taking today on its own measure, I can see that there is a whole lot of hatin' going on. You guys are gonna hafta let go of this, or it's gonna eat you up.
ReplyDeleteHe will cry and then write a book called, 'The almost great snowfall of 3/4/2015 (How God let me down.)
ReplyDeleteHuff & Co. have never treated non-certified staff well. And I'm a certified staff member. It's appalling.
ReplyDeleteGod hates CJ.
ReplyDeletePlease do not call all that live in Arbor Hills names. That is rude and wrong, some of us pay higher taxes than you can imagine and we work very hard.
ReplyDeleteI gotta agree with CJ on this. It iced over rather quickly after all looked well. I was up early, about 5:20 am and did not see any ice. About 6:30 I had sleet hitting mu house, I walked out to my porch and it was covered in ice. Let it go people, this is Missouri weather we are talking about and as far as I know we have never lost a child in the r-8 due to a weather incident.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet almost every other district seemed capable of calling it in time. The same patience that people seem to afford to Huff is hardly extended to other leaders - e.g. governors, presidents ("It's a tough job, everyone makes mistakes", etc.). Huff is in a position where he is expected to look at the information and make good decisions based upon that information, yet he can't even make a good decision based on the weather compared to almost EVERY other area district. If his job is so tough for him that we have to overlook constant error, maybe it should go to someone capable.
ReplyDelete