Cincinnati Public Schools closed five days this month due to severe weather. A few snow days earlier in the month were due to a winter storm that pounded the region with heavy snow, making travel difficult. The district also closed for a few days after the recent snowfall due to extreme cold. But the days CPS decided to keep schools open despite single-digit temperatures left some families questioning how the district makes its decisions.
CPS' severe weather procedures are outlined on its website. It says the district may close for snow, or extreme cold or hot temperatures. It also says the decision to close is made "after analyzing much data and consulting various authorities." Those authorities include senior staff, bus company operators, and road maintenance authorities.
While the procedures provide some explanation, school Board members say it leaves a lot to be desired.
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During Monday's Board of Education meeting, several members asked the superintendent to consider updating the language of the procedures posted online so families can better predict when schools might close and why.
"One day we're closed when it's a certain degree, but then it's another day that's really, really, really cold and we're open. And it's just not being consistent," Board member Mary Wineberg told Superintendent Shauna Murphy.
While Murphy says she understands people's frustrations, she told the Board the district's severe weather procedures don't include clear lines for when it's too cold to attend school because she considers several factors in the decision.
"I get a little cautious about a specific number or temperature," she said.
Murphy says beyond the weather, she accounts for student learning loss and staff who get paid by the hour. The rules are left ambiguous so the district can avoid long stretches of missed class time because the temperature dropped below a certain degree. Missed days can also put hourly workers in financial distress if there are multiple snow and cold days in a row.
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"If you miss a day's pay, that might be one thing people can live with. Two days. But by the time you get to that third day, it can really be painful." she said.
Board members told Murphy they understand how difficult making those decisions can be but said they're still interested in possibly updating the procedures with some of those explanations so families can better understand the superintendent's thought process.
The Board of Education will meet again in about two weeks.
