INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Public Schools leaders said parents could be getting calls, texts or emails from this district regarding their plans.
Malia Vanaman said she’s ready to have her two children, both IPS first-graders, bundled up if necessary. “I don’t know that I ever hope they cancel,” Vanaman said. “I think if they decided that’s the best thing to do, then I just always hope for enough advance warning.”
School leaders say they’ll make the call as quickly as they can and, if possible, they announce cancellations or delays the night before.
“Parents need as much advance notice as possible,” IPS spokesperson Carrie Black said.
Black said IPS uses a National Weather Service chart that shows how quickly frostbite can strike based on the windchill.
If it is so cold that kids could get frostbite within 10 minutes, IPS will consider delays and cancellations.
“I think it’s a good possibility we get that low,” WISH-TV meteorologist Marcus Bailey said. “Wednesday morning would be No. 1 (day of concern for schools). Thursday morning would be No. 2, but I think both of those mornings have a pretty good chance of being really cold.”
Black said, when it comes to delays, IPS will base its decisions on the expected temperatures around 7 a.m. If it’s unlikely to warm up significantly by 9 a.m., a cancellation will be considered.
The Greenwood Community Schools Corp. leaders said Monday they won’t announce their plans until Tuesday night at the earliest. Representatives of Carmel Clay, Hamilton Southeastern and Noblesville schools all said Monday it was too early for a decision.
(Photo by Thinkstock/Thinkstock.)
