Poorly plowed roads blamed for school cancellations for 5th day

The chaos left by a brutal winter storm is keeping many Hoosier students out of school for an entire week — even as temperatures creep upward.

Indianapolis Public Schools and several other local districts were to be closed Friday for a fifth consecutive day.

Schools chalked up Monday and Tuesday’s closures to the snow and extreme cold. But many said they remained closed Wednesday and Thursday because poorly plowed streets and unshoveled sidewalks created concerns about student safety.

“It’s real simple: The neighborhoods are just not passable,” Lawrence Township Schools Superintendent Shawn Smith said.

Several districts decided buses couldn’t make it onto side streets or wouldn’t have room to turn around. Snow piles blocked bus stops, which they feared would force students to wait in the streets. Snowy and slippery sidewalks posed yet another risk.

“It’s still not safe for students,” IPS organizational strategist Le Boler said. “Of course, we weigh the fact that parents have to find alternatives for their children, or they’re not at work, perhaps. That weighs very, very heavily on us, but when you have situations where it’s unsafe for students, we just have to err on the side of caution.”

For 83 percent of IPS students, the weather brought on a week without free or reduced-price lunches at school. IPS was referring families in need to the Red Cross or other community agencies, ­Boler said.

IPS is among many districts counting on warmer weather this weekend to melt away problems, she said.

Today’s school cancellations tacked on another day of frustrations for some parents.

“I understand the safety concerns. I’m still allowed to do some gnashing of the teeth, and that doesn’t mean I can’t be frustrated by the whole thing,” said Rae Kridel, whose third-grade son, Shaye, faced his fifth day of no school.

Kridel said she was filled with dread when she saw a Washington Township Schools phone number pop up again Thursday afternoon to tell her the news.

Having 9-year-old Shaye running around has distracted her from trying to work at home, she said: “Being cooped up for four days, five days, his energy level is through the roof.”

Her husband had to take a day off work Thursday to watch Shaye.

Shaye, who is autistic, has perused learning websites such as Starfall during his newfound free time. But Kridel worries that a week away from school is making Shaye miss out on crucial social lessons.

For parent Nicole Marquart, school cancellations put her in a no-win situation.

She didn’t want schools to open when conditions were so messy, she said, but she’s also staring down a growing stack of work pushed aside while her children have been home.

Her second-grader is getting bored: “Mom, I want to go back to school,” 7-year-old Lucy said.

With Lawrence Township schools closed again Friday, Marquart found herself printing out second-grade work packets for Lucy.

Instead of letting her 17-year-old daughter drive on still-slick roads, Marquart will take her and a teenage son to Hamilton Southeastern High School today with a two-hour delay.

“What are they going to learn? Two-hour delay on Friday, the first day back? With new schedules? It’s kind of ridiculous,” she said.

In Greenwood, Superintendent Kent DeKoninck decided subdivisions and streets were clear enough for students to return Thursday with a two-hour delay, with another delay planned Friday.

Just a few school buses straggled in late Thursday morning, he said.

“It would be disingenuous to say, ‘Oh, everything was perfect,’ ” DeKoninck said. “But we were in pretty good shape.”

Schools may have to add to their academic calendars to make up for this week’s cancellations. The state Department of Education will allow schools to apply for waivers to cover missed days Monday and Tuesday because of the extreme weather, spokesman Daniel Altman said.

But additional days off will need to be made up.

Some districts built extra days into their calendars. Carmel Clay Schools, for example, won’t have to worry about it two additional snow days because the district had scheduled 182 days of school, two more than required.

Some districts have “free” days off marked on the calendar that can be used as make-up time. Greenwood schools had planned to be off Feb. 14, for example, but might hold classes that day.

While many students have been out of classrooms all week, some teachers have had to report in. Even though school was out in Washington Township, teachers worked Thursday to prepare coursework and send out report cards, spokeswoman Ellen Rogers said.

So when school is finally back in session, she said, “we’d like to hit the ground running instead of having to catch up.”

Call Star reporter Stephanie Wang at (317) 444-6184. Follow her on Twitter: @stephaniewang.

Among the public schools in Indianapolis and surrounding counties closed Friday:

Indianapolis Public Schools and all Marion County public schools

All Boone County public schools

All Hendricks County public schools

Carmel Clay

Eastern Hancock

Eminence

Greenfield Central

Hamilton Heights

Hamilton Southeastern

Monroe-Gregg

Mooresville

Mount Vernon

Noblesville

Sheridan

Southern Hancock

Westfield Washinghton

Among the public schools in Indianapolis' surrounding counties with 2-hour delays Friday:

Center Grove

Clark-Pleasant

Franklin

Greenwood

Ninevah-Hensley-Jackson

Northwestern in Shelby County

Also, Martinsville Schools in Morgan County is having a records day for teachers. Students will not report to school.