WEATHER: Seattle Public Schools closed Wednesday, and other announcements

(first report Tuesday night) Seattle Public Schools just announced the district is CLOSED Wednesday. The district explains:

“Safety is our top priority and multiple factors were considered, including road conditions. We also recognize that tomorrow is an early release day and recognize the hardship a 2-hour delay would cause families.”

Also from SPS: “District offices open. All schools and school buildings are closed. Athletics and all student activities are canceled.”

(below updated 7:52 am Wednesday)

ALSO CLOSED:

Fauntleroy Children’s Center
South Seattle College
Holy Family
Holy Rosary
Community School of West Seattle

DELAYED:

Our Lady of Guadalupe – 2-hour delay, no zero-period Spanish, no morning EDC
Explorer West MS – late start, open at 10 am
Hope Lutheran – 2-hour late start, no morning extended care, no AM-only preschool (confirmed 6:13 am Wed.)

REGULAR SCHEDULE CONFIRMED:

Westside School
Seattle Lutheran HS
Cometa Playschool

OUTSIDE WEST SEATTLE:

Hamlin Robinson – 2-hour delay
UW Seattle – 9:30 am start
Highline Public Schools – normal
Seattle University – normal
Vashon Island School District – normal

We’ll continue adding other school announcements for here, as we get them – 206-293-6302, text or voice.

Ester January 14, 2020 (9:56 pm)

I really hope Seattle Lutheran and Hope are closed, both of my kids go there and we have a very long commute

rpo January 14, 2020 (10:03 pm)

It didn’t snow tonight, but it’s quite an ice skating rink outside.

Yma January 14, 2020 (10:16 pm)

Be careful out there!if possible- gather kiddos together for hot cocoa, games or movies. I’d love to head over to Meeples for a bit, but it depends on the road conditions.

Bradley January 14, 2020 (10:25 pm)

This seems unnecessary as it’s currently well above freezing at 10:30pm, there is very little-to-no snow forecast south of Everett, and it’s going to be close to 40 degrees by noon.

WSB January 14, 2020 (10:44 pm)

It’s a domino effect. The north end still has a lot of snow. SPS has to make a decision for the entire district, even if part is NOT experiencing the same effects. And SPS decisions are usually followed by many independent schools (although not always – Explorer West or one is still deciding, we’re told).
- Bradley January 14, 2020 (10:55 pm)
  
  Tomorrow is an SPS designated short day, anyway, so no big loss.
  - Kim January 14, 2020 (11:58 pm)
    
    Disagree. SPS teacher here, and I teach just as heartily on those shortened Wednesdays as I do on any other day.
    - Bradley January 15, 2020 (1:08 pm)
      
      I didn’t mean you SPS teachers are ineffective. I meant it’s much better for students to needlessly miss a half-day than a full session.
emma January 14, 2020 (11:38 pm)

party pooper
Shaun January 15, 2020 (7:22 am)

I agree completely! They would have never closed school down under these conditions when I attended. smh

slhs parent January 14, 2020 (10:29 pm)

hopfeully seattle lutheran closes

ACG January 14, 2020 (11:08 pm)

South Seattle College is closed tomorrow.

WSB January 14, 2020 (11:20 pm)

Both of the above are already mentioned in the story, thank you.

Lindsay January 14, 2020 (11:39 pm)

Note that the 11:04pm update states that all World Kids locations are closed. However, only the Seattle locations have decided to close because of SPS closure. Burien and Edmonds locations will decide in the morning based on their school districts.

WSB January 14, 2020 (11:47 pm)

The text from Antoinette said “All WorldKids locations are closed tomorrow.”
- Jason January 15, 2020 (5:56 am)
  - WSB January 15, 2020 (6:12 am)
    
    I have not heard again from the person who contacted us last night re: WorldKids, so I’m just taking them off the list.
    - em January 15, 2020 (1:20 pm)
      
      To be fair, WorldKids does go off public schools in the area and had sent out the closure last night based on Seattle schools being closed. I think they reconsidered this morning based on the road conditions.

Tony January 15, 2020 (5:32 am)

Any word from Hamlin Robinson, Westside Schools???

WSB January 15, 2020 (5:44 am)

What’s above is everyone we’ve heard from. As of right now, 5:44 am, I haven’t heard from either of those.
- WSB January 15, 2020 (6:17 am)
  
  Update, Westside is NORMAL, Hamlin Robinson delayed.

s January 15, 2020 (6:18 am)

Did they update anything about Seattle Lutheran High school?

WSB January 15, 2020 (6:29 am)

As of 6:26 am, we haven’t heard from SLHS, and the newest update on their website is for Tuesday.
- WSB January 15, 2020 (6:41 am)
  
  Update, we are told SLHS is normal schedule today.
  - Emma January 15, 2020 (7:02 am)
    
    Aw that sucks people have long commutes from different schools and I was not looking forward to my icey commute and I thought the school would get that

Amy January 15, 2020 (7:18 am)

Does anyone know if Vashon schools are open today? They have a prospective student tour today…wondering if it’s still on…

WSB January 15, 2020 (7:47 am)

Aside from the absence of messaging on their website, according to FlashAlert, in which they participate, “operating as usual.”
https://www.flashalert.net/id/VashonIslandSD

(Adding that above, which I should have done sooner.)

heyalki January 15, 2020 (7:57 am)

I don’t know what’s more disappointing…the fact that it basically didn’t snow at all, or how much the city is blowing this out of proportion.

PedroTheLion January 15, 2020 (8:24 am)

Totally agree. The school should have waited to make its decision – like it has every other day – until early this morning, when it was clear that the roads and weather were not a problem.
S - in West Seattle January 15, 2020 (8:35 am)

Totally agree with you on both. #nosnowmageddon2020
newnative January 15, 2020 (10:15 am)

I think it’s an unfortunate weather event. the line seems really sharp dividing who received snow and who didn’t (as much). My coworkers commute from all parts of the county and some were unable to come in and some of us were. Today one of them got stuck in their own driveway. Another is snowed in.
- heyalki January 16, 2020 (8:05 am)
  
  I don’t get why the areas not affected can’t still function though. It’s as if the city thinks people can’t make their own decision on whether or not it’s safe for them to commute here.
  It’s one thing if a business needs to close if key people, or not enough people can make it…but that’s probably not the case in most of these situations.

Mj January 15, 2020 (9:11 am)

Wow, a 2 hour delay would make sense, closing does not! Hopefully the decision does not bite if there are more snow days in the future that truly need to close schools.

Lura Ercolano January 15, 2020 (10:30 am)

Seattle’s contracted schedule has a snow make-up day on Wednesday, January 29. It’s been on every teacher’s calendar, and on calendars sent to parents, etc. So school was going to be closed either today, or on Wednesday in two weeks. SPS didn’t need to decide that conditions would be so horrid that they absolutely, positively, had to close today. They just needed to decide that it was likely better to close today than to close on the 29th.

Judith January 15, 2020 (11:54 am)

January 29th is a day off for teachers as it is a day between semesters which is a lot for high school teachers.It is designated as a makeup day to lessen any last-minute negotiations in the event of a snow day.Now High School teachers will go from 150 students and one set of classes to a different hundred and fifty students and sometimes different classes without a day in between.It would make more sense to assign the first two days of April break as potential makeup days.Seattle has to adjust to shifts in weather conditions. Look at Chicago, Minnesota, New Hampshire and the weather that everyone goes to school in. Today there are too many children home without care, without food, without heat. Hourly people are not paid, child care’s close,One call to close Seattle Public Schools has a huge impact especially on a day when school could have been opened.

Sorry, comment time is over.