Dear UPSD Parents and Guardians:
Temperatures are dropping and the end of fall is in sight. Now is a good time to begin preparing for the possibility of weather-related school closures or delays.
Please review this information carefully so you are prepared. Let us know if you have any questions or need help.
How and when are decisions made to delay or cancel school? When snow or ice are predicted, we drive the roads in U.P. before 4:30 am to check on
local conditions. We also monitor regional conditions because many staff commute from outside U.P. Safety is our primary concern. We try to make a decision by 5:15 a.m. On rare occasions, if we know morning conditions will be unsafe, we will announce a decision the night before. On some mornings changing conditions require us to delay school first and then make a final decision for the day before 8 AM. Power outages can happen at any time and without warning. We almost never cancel or delay school due to power issues (see more below).
How are parents notified when school is delayed or canceled? Parents will be notified using ParentSquare. Make sure you’ve downloaded the
ParentSquare app. All parents will receive a text message and an email unless the School Alert option in ParentSquare has been intentionally disabled. Parents may also use the
Flash Alert system. This third-party tool provides text and email alerts for many school districts. A test alert for both systems will be sent next week.
What options will the district consider when weather conditions are severe?
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Two-Hour Late Starts give everyone more time to get to school, allow visibility and road conditions to improve, and create more time for staff to prepare facilities (i.e., deicing, clearing sidewalks, etc.). On Wednesday “late start” days, weather-related delays will be one hour from the scheduled start time for students. Sunset Preschool classes are canceled when schools are delayed.
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School Closure is necessary when the forecast and conditions at 5:00 a.m. indicate that conditions won’t improve fast enough to get everyone safely to campus. If we cancel a full day of school, we will make up the day later in the year.
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Closing School After it Starts. We never want to send kids home early once they are at school. This type of closure is very unlikely and would only be made in extreme circumstances.
Will power outages cause school delays or closures? Almost never. Because power outages are usually resolved within a few hours it is very unlikely that school will be delayed or canceled due to loss of power. If we lose power during a school day at one or more schools,
we will not cancel school or send kids home early. If power is lost overnight or in the morning, we will work closely with Tacoma Public Utilities to determine how long it will take for power to be restored.
In very rare circumstances we may need to cancel or delay school. Most of the time, however, we will be able to conduct school without power for short periods of time without impacting schedules. Notification of delays and closures due to power outages will follow the same procedures as other inclement weather.
Will bus routes change when there are snow delays? No. Bus routes will not change except in
very rare circumstances. Minor changes might be made to some routes to avoid steep hills. Any changes will be communicated to parents in advance.
What about after-school activities and events? When school is delayed or closed, after-school activities and events
may be impacted. Each school will provide notification of any changes throughout the day.
We appreciate your preparation, understanding, patience, and support this winter.
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