Dear Kent Community Members,
This month, I write you about two important issues: “snow days” and school finance.
Last year, our students remained home for two “snow days” right before the holidays in December. In contrast, this year, we experienced temperatures in the upper-forty degrees and no snow days in December. Can you believe it?
Nevertheless, I want to remind you of the weather conditions we examine for school closings. Three conditions fly in the face of “safety first” for our students. First, when temperatures drop into the single digits, we watch the wind chill factor, which may drop into double-digit negative degrees. Second, when heavy snows create unsafe conditions for bus travel, Jim Soyars, our Director of Business Services, travels the roads in the early morning hours to determine driving conditions. He also contacts a variety of sources (e.g., Ohio Highway Patrol) in order to assist me with the final decision. Third, we look at the depth of snow or extent of ice on city sidewalks. Several feet of snow can make it impossible for our younger students to walk to school.
If these factors occur, I likely will call-off school by sending a parent broadcast by phone to all households. The range of times of this decision could be any time between the previous evening and the next morning before 6:30 AM, before the school busses start to roll. You also may consult with your local television news stations. As always, I approve as an “excused absence” any parent’s decision to keep a child at home on days that schools remain open when a parent disagrees with my decision.
Next, on the topic of school finance, I ask you to watch for our winter FOCUS newsletter, sent directly to your homes in late January or early February, 2012. As I am sure that you have read other newsletters from me on school finance, I just want to remind you that the newest successes of recent cost savings will be reported soon. You will see that our vigilance has preserved the valuable support that you provide the Kent Schools. Ongoing reductions in state funding continue to impact Kent’s school budget significantly. In spite of these losses, we have managed to sustain the district’s operational costs in a prudent manner.
During these challenging economic times, I want to offer some information that could help our Kent families. At any time during the school year, you may apply for our federal program of Free or Reduced-Price meal benefits, which include both breakfast and lunch. Simply call your building principal or secretary for the necessary form to complete. All information will be kept strictly confidential, and your child’s use of the program is not recognizable by others because of our new, computerized “Point-of-Sale” system, called POS. The POS system protects your child’s confidential information. Please take advantage of this resource. Happy winter!
Sincerely,
Dr. Joe Giancola
Superintendent