From the Superintendent of Nordonia Hills City Schools,
I apologize for this lengthy email, but I have three items to discuss today:
Happy Thanksgiving!: School is closed for students from Wednesday, November 24 through Monday, November 29. School resumes on Tuesday, November 30. Please enjoy a safe and relaxing holiday.
Substitute Teachers Needed: Last night the Nordonia Board of Education passed a resolution made possible by an emergency piece of state legislation related to substitute teachers. Because of the nationwide shortage of substitute teachers, Ohio Senate Bill 1—per the board’s resolution–will allow anyone with a high school diploma to sub in grades K-5 classrooms, and anyone with two years of college to sub in grades 6-12 classrooms, all subject to criminal background checks. This legislation is for the 2021-22 school year only. If you or anyone you know meet the qualifications and are interested in getting on our substitute list, please apply online here: https://www.applitrack.com/wixey/onlineapp/_application.aspx?starting=true
This is a great opportunity for recent high school graduates, seniors, stay-at-home parents, or anyone who wants to make a little extra money while working with the greatest kids in Ohio.
Snow Days Coming: It is getting to be that time of year when snow, ice and extreme cold may cause disruptions to school. Please let me explain how we make decisions regarding calamity days.
We closely monitor the weather forecast for snow and extremely cold temperatures throughout the winter months. The website I trust most for weather information is www.weather.gov. We also maintain communication with the local road crews and police, and I and other staff drive neighborhoods.
Whenever possible, the decision to close school will be made the previous evening. However, closings may be announced as late as 6 a.m. depending on a variety of factors.
The district has no specific temperature policy for cancelling school, but we use the National Weather Service Wind Chill Chart as a guide. In addition, we closely monitor road conditions and the ability of our buses to run on time. We will most likely have school if the temperatures remain in the lightest blue color on the chart and the buses are running on time. However, it is not uncommon for us to close when the windchill is -15 or colder for a sustained period of time. We make decisions that are in the best interest of our students with safety as our number one priority.
Parents know their children best. If parents are concerned for their children’s safety getting to and from school or activities, we respect their right to keep them home.
When the Nordonia Schools CLOSE:
- All evening activities in the elementary and middle school buildings are cancelled.
- High school evening activities may take place depending on the weather throughout the day. Communication regarding such events will be made by relevant coaches or advisors.
- Preschool and YMCA before/aftercare are cancelled
- Transportation to CVCC is not provided.
- Community groups scheduled to use school facilities (e.g., youth athletic leagues, Scouts, etc.) will have their events cancelled.
When the Nordonia Schools DELAY:
- AM kindergarten is cancelled.
- AM preschool is cancelled.
- CVCC morning bus runs are cancelled.
- YMCA before/aftercare will operate on a two-hour delay.
When the decision to close school is made, the information will appear first on my Twitter feed. You can follow me at @JoeSuperintend1. In addition, families will receive a phone call, and the information will be posted on our website and all major local news stations.
Please know that while I appreciate good-natured tweets from students begging me for a day off, they play absolutely no factor in my decision-making process. Also, Twitter posts from local weathermen making predictions about the chances of having a snow day are made to increase their social media traffic and have no credibility.
The first spring training game for the Guardians is on February 26! In the meantime, have a safe and enjoyable winter!
Sincerely,
Joe Clark, Ph.D.
Superintendent
