M-W takes back one day of school

Friday, May 27 is now an official instructional day CENTRAL VALLEY - It’s official: Friday, May 27 is a school day for Monroe-Woodbury students. Last Friday, the district advised faculty, staff, students and families that due to the large number of snow days, the district would have to take back Friday, May 27, as an instructional day. While it was regularly reported that the district had allocated a total of seven days for snow this year, Monroe-Woodbury School District Superintendent Edward Mehrhof said Monday that in all actuality, only six days were set aside in the event of snow. The snow day on March 23 put the district at its seventh snow day used this school year - excluding the numerous delayed openings due to weather - requiring it to take back a day in order to meet New York State’s 180-school day requirement.. Mehrhof said he understood having classes on Friday would disrupt the long four-day Memorial Day weekend plans of many but he was required to take the day back. Additionally, Mehrhof said, the district will be exploring the possibility of having three-hour delayed openings next year if necessary. Some area school districts have successfully used three-hour delayed openings this year in an effort to minimize closing school on days when weather and road conditions improve in the late morning, thereby not wasting a snow day. Earlier this year, Mehrhof said he initially believed it wouldn’t be feasible to implement three-hour delays due to transportation issues, but upon further investigation, he said it seems possible to do so. “We want to see if we can make this work,” he said. “We definitely are entertaining the idea of three-hour delays.” Mehrhof reminded district parents that decisions regarding delays and closures are made during the very early morning hours before staff and buses are out on the roads. They are based on road conditions, police reports, counsel from the district’s transportation staff and weather forecasts at travel times in the morning as well as what’s expected in the afternoon, putting safety first, he said. And, sometimes those weather forecasts prove to be inaccurate. - Nancy Kriz