I hope that D’Evelyn students and families enjoyed the four-day break last weekend. We have just three weeks of school before the Thanksgiving Break. I look forward to the many great achievements our students reach in the upcoming weeks, both inside and outside the classroom. Given the recent weather in the Denver metro area, it is important that D’Evelyn students, teachers, staff, and families understand our protocols in response to adverse weather conditions. There are three basic modifications that D’Evelyn may follow in the event of inclement weather:
D’Evelyn follows Jeffco Public Schools decision-making regarding 2-hour delays and school cancellations in weather-related incidents. Jeffco Schools communicates decisions on these cancellations via their School Messenger system to families/staff, their website, and their official social media platforms. Additionally, local media stations like CBS4, Denver 7, and 9News (among others) work to broadcast this information to the community. In the past few days, we have received questions from our community members regarding where D’Evelyn fits in the district decision-making. D’Evelyn does and will continue to follow all district decisions on school delays and cancellations. In addition to the district decisions on 2-hour delay and school cancellation, D’Evelyn maintains its own 15-minute delay protocol. This is decided by the D’Evelyn administration, generally around 7:15 am, on days with inclement weather when the district is on a regular start. The purpose of the 15-minute delay is to help provide relief in the case that a large number of students are running late due to weather conditions. We do not announce this delay publicly but do share the information with students and teachers in the building. In the event of inclement weather, our school district personnel have a thorough and thoughtful process for deciding about whether school should be delayed or cancelled, or whether we should follow a regular start. These important decisions are made in consideration of over 80,000 students and their families across the broad geographic area of Jefferson County. In a broadcast to the nation about rubber manufacturing capacity in 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt remarked, “there are as many opinions as there are experts.” I was disappointed and disheartened to hear about the significant negative feedback towards the school district regarding the use of the 2-hour delay protocol on Wednesday, October 30th. However, upon reflection, I even found myself playing the role of “weather expert” late Tuesday night as I waited to hear if we would have school, have a delayed start, or have school cancelled on Wednesday. It is my understanding that on Wednesday, many Jeffco families and students provided negative, and at times nasty, feedback to district officials, particularly via social media. It is my hope that going forward, D’Evelyn students and families will be able to accept and support the difficult decisions made by our school district during inclement weather, while providing respectful, constructive feedback at the appropriate time. Please keep in mind - families that wish to keep their students at home due to inclement weather may do so, and the absence will be excused. From a D’Evelyn perspective, the 2-hour delay was the perfect solution to the inclement weather situation that we faced Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. It allowed for traffic to reduce and roads to clear so that students and families could get to school safely. It also allowed our teachers to work with students in all 6 classes with reduced class periods throughout the course of the day - we did not lose a day of instruction or the opportunity to help our students learn and grow on Wednesday. I am grateful that the district created a 2-hour delay protocol and that we were able to implement it smoothly in its first usage. I also appreciate the efforts of students, teachers, and families to make the 2-hour delay work so well on Wednesday. As Coloradoans, we are familiar with quickly changing weather conditions and significant snow storms throughout the fall, winter, and spring. Over the course of this school year and beyond, there will most certainly be days where school is either delayed or cancelled. It is my request of the entire D’Evelyn community that we remain positive and respectful in how we respond to district-level decisions regarding school during inclement weather. Thank you for your continued support of your child(ren) and our school.
Bobbie Lutz
11/6/2019 06:03:51 pm
Well said! Jefferson County is huge and the District makes decisions for everyone’s safety. I really appreciate your thoughtful words and comments. Comments are closed.
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