Xpress Lane: Snow day policies anything but blanket

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What’s up with nonsnow snow days?

Recently, Xpress has received a lot of complaints that Buncombe County’s two school districts added too many remote learning days due to wintry conditions. Xpress reached out to both school districts to get details.

While the two districts don’t always make the same decision to close, they work together to determine the safety of the roads around the county, says Kim Dechant, chief of staff at Asheville City Schools (ACS). The decision boils down to safe bus travel. Jeremy Stowe, transportation director for Buncombe County Schools (BCS), manages a fleet of 205 buses transporting 11,000 students across 15,000 miles every day. He responded to Xpress’ questions through BCS spokesperson Ken Ulmer.

How do you decide to close schools or switch to a remote learning day during winter weather?

“Buncombe County Schools prioritizes student and staff safety when making weather-related decisions. On mornings when inclement weather is in the forecast, a team of 13 district transportation staff and mechanics conduct early morning road assessments across all attendance districts. This process begins between 3:30 and 4 a.m. to ensure a decision is made by 5:15 a.m., when the first buses begin their routes.

Our assessments include visual inspections of major roads, temperature readings of roads and bridges, hourly monitoring of National Weather Service updates and information from the Buncombe County Sheriff’’s Office, N.C Highway Patrol, N.C. Department of Transportation and other school districts nearby.”

Why must the entire district close when only the farthest reaches of the county might have icy roads? 

“BCS understands that some areas of the county may have clearer roads while others face hazardous conditions. However, several factors make a districtwide approach necessary in many cases:

1. Interconnected bus routes: While elementary schools serve specific neighborhoods, our high school bus routes weave in and out of multiple attendance districts. A high school bus in a “warmer” area may still need to pick up students in an icy, mountainous area. This creates logistical challenges and potential safety risks.
2. Teenage drivers: BCS has approximately 2,000 teenage drivers commuting to school each day. Many of these students travel from higher elevations or areas prone to ice. Allowing some schools to remain open while others close could put inexperienced drivers in dangerous conditions.
3. Staff travel: Teachers, staff and administrators do not necessarily live in the same district where they work. A teacher at a school in a lower-elevation area may live in a part of the county with hazardous roads, making it difficult or unsafe for them to report to work.

BCS has six attendance districts: T.C. Roberson, Erwin, Reynolds, North Buncombe, Owen and Enka. When possible, we limit closures to only the affected districts to minimize disruptions while keeping students safe. For example, on Feb. 17, only the Erwin and North Buncombe districts were closed due to snow-covered roads while the rest of the county remained open. However, in some cases unsafe conditions are present countywide, leading to a districtwide closure or a remote learning day.”

‘Asynchronous’ learning

The districts declare “asynchronous remote learning days,” on which students complete assignments or handouts on their own, as opposed to being instructed by a teacher in real time. Those days have been the subject of parents’ ire this year. In a recent ACS survey of more than 400 parents, teachers and staff, respondents largely said they would prefer having their student’s teacher work with them via remote video software rather than just assigning homework, Dechant says. The district is taking that into consideration for next year, she notes.

State law requires districts to have at least 185 instructional days between the Monday closest to Aug. 26 and the Friday closest to June 11. That makes it difficult for districts to add in-person days to the end of the year, Dechant says.