A winter snowstorm on Jan. 8-9 caused Rocky View School division to cancel classes Jan. 10 at a number of area schools.
Closures affected Airdrie, Crossfield, Beiseker, Langdon, Chestermere, Indus, Kathyrn and Prince of Peace school near Chestermere. School was still in session for Bearspaw, Bragg Creek, Springbank, Cochrane and Westbrook students.
“It was my decision,” said Ward 3 co-trustee Sylvia Eggerer of the Airdrie school closures. “This is a decision that you’re wrong both ways. You’re wrong if you keep them open, you’re wrong if you keep it closed.”
Eggerer surveyed Airdrie streets Jan. 9 at 11:45 p.m. and said at the time, closing schools was the right call.
By 4:30 a.m., calls were being swapped between the school’s inclement weather committee and by 5 a.m. the day was cancelled.
“Given the fact that the weather got so much better with the course of the day, we could have run school,” said Eggerer. “It’s a shame that I closed them.”
“Our jurisdiction is so big geographically that our weather can be significantly different,” said Angela Spanier, RVS director of communications. “That’s why some areas are closed and some aren’t. Generally, we have one (snow day) a year.”
First Student Canada’s Susan Fowler oversees Airdrie’s school buses and said its fleet was snowed in at various depots.
“I certainly give them my information and whether or not buses can run,” said Fowler. “I’m sure they do take that information and consider it when making their decision.”
Fowler added some rural drivers park buses at their residence, but “huge drifting had those buses paralyzed.”
Trustee Don Thomas, who also represents Airdrie, didn’t anticipate receiving a phone call Jan. 10, informing him schools were closed.
“I have stated philosophy that urban schools should never close,” Thomas said. “We’re too big, we don’t need to.”
“It’s what happens, it’s part of the deal,” he said. “Everybody has to make their own decisions.”
Superintendent of Schools Greg Bass said the cancellation didn’t affect academics.
“Our jurisdiction already exceeds the minimum learning requirements as defined in the School Act,” he said. “One day of lost instruction due to inclement weather does not require an action plan be put in place to make up for the lost time.”
