Arlington Schools Closed Rest of the Week

Update at 7:25 PM – The federal government is closed Thursday.

Update at 6:45 PM – Arlington County government offices, courts, libraries, and recreation facilities will also be closed Thursday. No word on Friday, yet.

Arlington County schools will be closed for the rest of the week. Students will resume classes on Tuesday, the school system announced this afternoon.

Part of today’s email to parents from superintendent Patrick K. Murphy, after the jump.

Dear Parents:

As I write today’s update, it is still snowing and we are experiencing high winds, and yet again efforts to begin “digging out” once are underway. This is a difficult job for crews already fatigued from working round the clock for the past week and we owe them a debt of gratitude for their perseverance and commitment to our community.

Although I would love to say that schools will open this week, unfortunately today’s storm has set us back several days. Because the County and APS crews now need to begin clearing all of the roads, sidewalks and parking lots yet again, and because we recognize that families need time to make continued childcare arrangements, we have announced that schools will be closed the remainder of this week. Although many of our administrative staff has continued to work through the storm and closings, right now we plan to have our administrative offices open on Friday so we are available to families and can prepare for school to resume next week.

Over the past few days we have heard about problems that the added weight of so much snow is taking on buildings throughout the region. Yesterday, Arlington County staff offered to assist us with checking the roof structures at our facilities, particularly those buildings with long roof spans. Inspections at our buildings began yesterday and once the current storm ends, they will continue. Facilities staff will also continue to monitor the situation when the snow begins to melt so that we can catch any problems and repair issues quickly to minimize damages from the storm.

As I explained last Friday, we are working now to develop an alternative plan for make-up days, and will post it online as soon as it is available. Although Mon, Feb. 15 (President’s Day) was an option in our original calendar, we do not plan to open school next Monday since we do not have sufficient time to give parents and staff advance notice at this point. Also, we will need more than that one make-up day, so we are looking at other options to fulfill our instructional obligations to our students and families.