Each year, with the arrival of winter, we receive a number of questions regarding our District’s policy for closing school due to inclement weather conditions. We understand that the decision to close schools has an enormous impact on all of our families. The District makes a great effort to make the final determination about whether or not to close the schools sometime between 5:30 – 6:00 a.m. There are several factors that are taken into account during the process of making the decision including road conditions, building and grounds condition, air temperature, and weather forecasts.
When severe weather exists, we typically begin monitoring the situation at 4:00 a.m. with District personnel on-site to assess the condition of both roads and facilities. When road conditions are less than ideal, District personnel are in direct communication with local safety forces and local road crews to determine whether buses can travel safely on our local roads. In most instances, if roads are deemed safe for travel by our fleet of buses, school will be in session for Olmsted Falls School District.
In regard to cold weather or wind chill, please keep in mind that one variable that differentiates Olmsted Falls School District from neighboring districts (such as Berea, Fairview Park, North Olmsted and Strongsville) is that our District provides transportation services for all of its students and does not have a walking zone for students, like many of the surrounding communities. Because of this level of transportation service, there may be times when Olmsted Falls School District is able to remain open while other surrounding districts are forced to close.
Ultimately, the decision on whether to send your child to school is your own. We do ask that you notify your child’s school building as you normally would if he/she will not be in attendance on a day that school is in session.
Should the decision be made to close schools, all efforts will be made to notify local media outlets by 6:00 a.m. In addition, a school closure notice will also be posted on our District website at
www.ofcs.net. Olmsted Falls School District does not currently spend district funds on automated phone and/or text alerts to parents. However, there are several local media outlets that provide an alert service for free including WKYC Channel 3, WEWS NewsNet Channel 5 and Fox 8 Cleveland.