As the possibility of snow flickers in and out of the forecast, Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. is making a change to its snow day plans.
BCSC school board members have approved Superintendent Jim Robert’s request for eLearning to be used on up to five snow days for the 2020-21 school year. After the first five days, any additional snow days will be made up at the end of the school year. Right now, the last day of school is scheduled for May 26, per BCSC’s online calendar.
“Our staff did a tremendous job, first semester, in bouncing back and forth between instruction models and being as engaging and rigorous as they could be, given the circumstances, to keep moving our kids forward,” Roberts said at Monday’s school board meeting. “That experience has given us faith, belief, that if we do an eLearning day, that it will be done well, and our kids will benefit from it.”
Roberts sent out a statement confirming the change Tuesday afternoon, in which he stated this policy change also pertains not just to snow days, but also “any other necessary cancellation of a school day” during this school year.
Previously, 2020-21 school year had built-in makeup days scheduled for the first week of spring break, March 8-12, with any additional days added to the end of the year. Two of these days have already been scheduled for makeup to accommodate the later start to the school year. Originally, the fall semester was scheduled to begin on Aug. 6, but it was later moved back to Aug. 10.
In light of the school board’s decision regarding snow days, the remaining scheduled makeup days will be part of spring break, which now begins on March 10.
The school board’s decision regarding snow days is similar to what was recently approved in BCSC’s three-year calendar for 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24. For each of the next three school years, BCSC has scheduled one week of spring break and will use eLearning on snow days. According to the approved calendar, after the first five inclement weather days, any additional days will be made up at the end of the school year.
Roberts acknowledged that there are some difficulties that come with this shift. For instance, he noted that elementary students don’t necessarily take home their devices every day, so the school corporation may need to work on sending these home more often.
“With this change, schools will continue to work closely with families regarding taking home electronic devices in the event of upcoming inclement weather,” Roberts said.
BCSC will make allowances and assignment extensions if a student doesn’t have access to their device or faces connectivity issues, Roberts said.
Although eLearning will now be used for snow days, the school corporation will not change its “decision-making process” on such days and will “continue to work very hard to get our kids here.”
He also acknowledged that for some, using eLearning on a snow day might come as a disappointment.
“Maybe we have to say, get out and take an hour or two and throw a snowball at each other or something like that, and make sure that we understand that there is some fun,” he said. “P.E. is a part of the curriculum, isn’t it?”
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A statement regarding the change has been posted at bcscschools.org and on the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp.’s Facebook page.
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