When inclement weather is a possibility, SISD district administrators actively monitor weather conditions. The district considers several factors before deciding to cancel, delay, or dismiss school early due to inclement weather.

With the uncertainty of weather conditions, we ask that parents and staff monitor local media resources, the SISD website, and have the ParentSquare mobile app installed, before making your way to the school or sending children to the bus stop.

Keep in mind that if there is no announcement made from SISD, classes will be held on a normal schedule.

In the event of inclement weather or other emergency causing a delay, early release, or cancellation of classes, Snyder ISD will communicate with the community, parents, and staff via the following:

• ParentSquare app notification, phone call, and/or text

• SISD Facebook

• SISD Website News

• Snyder News

• KSNY 101.5 FM Radio-Snyder/Big Star Radio Group

• KGWB WTC FM 91.1 Radio-Snyder

• KTXS 12 Television-Abilene

• KRBC 9 Television-Abilene

• KTAB 32 Television-Abilene

• KCBD 11 Television-Lubbock

• KLBK 13 Television-Lubbock

• KJTV Fox 34 Television-Lubbock

For schools, the weather delay or closing process is complicated, but one thing is simple: The first priority is student and staff safety. Whether students and parents cheer because it means a “snow day” at home or groan they must scramble to make contingency plans, most of what goes on behind the scenes for the school to arrive at that decision is unknown.

Many factors are carefully analyzed when the district decides whether to delay opening or canceling school:

• We speak with weather experts and receive weather updates from the National Weather Service.

• Our transportation staff begin driving roads between 3-4 a.m. to determine the degree of iciness and road safety. We give careful consideration to the most dangerous roads in the district. Though the streets in your neighborhood may look clear, other streets may be dangerous. We also consider the risk to the least experienced drivers— high school students.

• Amount of snow or ice accumulated, projected accumulations, and whether precipitation is continuing.

• Parking lot conditions. If the school parking lots can’t be cleared and treated before school starts, parents’ vehicles and school buses can’t navigate safely in the parking lots, which causes dangerous conditions for students, parents, and bus drivers.

• Temperature and wind chill. Some students walk or ride bicycles to and from school, and some have to wait outside in the harsh weather at their bus stop.

• What area school districts and colleges are doing. While every district is unique in its circumstances, district staff does monitor what nearby districts are doing to help guide the decision-making process.

After the superintendent makes the final decision, we notify families through the communication methods mentioned above. We make this decision as quickly as possible as we know it affects parents’ ability to make childcare arrangements, and also affects district staff who are scheduled to arrive hours before school starts.

Every effort is made to make a decision by 5:30 a.m. or earlier so that parents and staff can be notified by 6 a.m. When severe weather is a certainty, the decision may be made the day before. If school is already in session and severe weather develops, we then have to take protective measures to ensure the safety of the students in their care during the adverse weather. It’s not a simple decision to dismiss early, because in some cases, early dismissal causes parents to drive to pick up their children in dangerous weather.

The decision to delay or cancel school is never easy, especially when school administration must then deal with the aftermath of rescheduling makeup days in an already tight school calendar and frustrated parents who disagree with the decision to close. One thing we can always agree on: we all want to keep the students and staff safe.