During the school year, it may be necessary to change school schedules because of road conditions due to ice and snow, other inclement weather, or emergencies. If there is no announcement of school closing or early dismissal, families can automatically assume that schools are open. The procedures listed in this memo will be followed by the Waynesboro Area School District

SCHOOL OPENING: MORNING DECISION

In case of inclement weather, one of the following decisions will be made:

1. TWO-HOUR DELAY    

Schools will open two hours later than normal. Buses will delay pick-up times by two hours and will be traveling on regular routes two hours later than normal. Afternoon dismissal will be at regular time. Radio/TV stations will initially be notified by 5:30 AM, and will then broadcast the schedule changes as announced by the school district.

Please note, that in some cases where a two-hour delay is announced, a final decision to cancel school for the entire day may be necessary; this decision will be made no later than 7:00 AM.

Information regarding school closing will be posted on the district website, www.wasdpa.org, as well as the official WASD app (available on the Apple and Google app stores) which allows for immediate push notifications, and our social media pages (Twitter/ Facebook) by 7:00AM.                           

2. SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED 

If weather conditions are hazardous and buses are not able to operate safely, an announcement will be made that schools are closed.

Parents are asked to understand that when there is a delay or when schools are open and some snow has fallen, some delay of buses may occur, particularly in hilly, rural areas. It is also possible that some sections of a road will not be traveled on a given day. Students residing at those locations will be excused from school.

3. EARLY DISMISSAL

Road conditions due to accumulations of ice, snow, water, or other emergencies may require dismissing schools earlier than usual. The school district will attempt to make the decision for an early dismissal before 11:30 AM. Parents will be notified by BoroBlast, text message and email. The decision will also be broadcast on radio station WAYZ in all cases, and on other stations in which we are able to notify. In addition, information regarding early dismissal will be posted on the district website, www.wasdpa.org, our social media pages (Facebook/Twitter) as well as our WASD app which allows for immediate push notifications. The announcements will include the dismissal times for secondary students (grades 6-12) and elementary schools (grades K-5). All after-school activities and evening events/performances and practices will be cancelled.

SCHOOL CLOSING: SCHOOL DAY DECISION

Please note, parents need to make emergency arrangements to provide for the care of children when schools do not open, when school opening is delayed, or when school is dismissed early. In isolated instances, buses may not be able to move on certain roads, even on days when school is open, thus requiring care for children who live at these locations.

SNOW/INCLEMENT WEATHER MAKE-UP DAY (FOR THE 2023/2024 SY)

The first two (2) days of in-person instruction will be made up during pre-set “Make Up Days” as marked on the district's calendar. Those days are as follows:

• December 22, 2023

• February 19, 2024

Any remaining weather-related cancelation will become FID Days (Flexible Instruction Days). WASD has been approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education for five (5) FID days.

FLEXIBLE INSTRUCTIONAL DAY (FID)

1. Students do not attend in-person instruction.

2. Instruction will be synchronous/asynchronous

3. FID day procedures will be reviewed with students and shared with families.

4. On a FID day students will receive communication about the day through Google Classroom

   (elementary) or Schoology (middle and high school). The communication will describe how to

   access instructional material, how to log attendance, and how to request assistance for the day.

5. Assignments and activities will be made available to students by 8:30 a.m. on the Flexible Instructional Day.

6. Students will be considered present for the Flexible Instructional Day upon verification of login status in the LMS (Learning Management System) or Google Classroom/Schoology.

7. Students will have two school days to complete the FID activities to receive full credit for grading purposes only.

What if more than seven (7) school closures occur?
If more than seven (7) school days are canceled, the days will be made up in person at the end of the school year.

Please ensure your contact information is correct within the Sapphire Community Web Portal. To change contact information, please call your children’s school office. Thank you for your cooperation and assistance during the inclementweather days of the school year.