Our view: Safety comes first in school closures
Published 12:53 pm Friday, January 6, 2017
For the second day in a row Friday, children in the Clark County Public Schools and many other districts throughout Kentucky got to hear two of their favorite words: Snow Day.
Many people joked about Thursday’s cancellations because it really didn’t start snowing in much of our area until very late in the day. The roads were also fairly clear this morning, but this is a circumstance where the best policy is to always err on the side of caution.
Our children’s safety must always be the first, last and only consideration when it comes to canceling school.
We appreciate the Clark superintendent and administrators for putting safety as the highest priority.
No one wants to see children go longer into the summer because of makeup days, but the fact we have made it into January and only used two of the seven allotted days is a decent start to the season.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed for a mild winter from here on out.
We understand school closings have a significant impact in households where both adults work an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. day. We hope families take the time to prepare and have contingencies in place for child care.
We also hope employers will be lenient under the circumstances and allow some flexibility when needed.
Families should also consider things they can do at home to further a child’s education even while they are enjoying the day off. Certainly, children should be allowed to have fun and enjoy the day off, but incorporating an educational component is a smart and often fun way to connect families and keep the learning process going.
Mother Nature doesn’t care about our plans for the day, the week or life in general, but we can certainly work to be prepared to make sure our youth and their safety remain the top priority.