Parkway Schools

AlertNow Messages

Parkway parents will receive an AlertNow recorded phone message when school is closed due to weather or unforeseen emergencies. Messages will go to all parents' home, cell and work numbers that are on file with the school. E-mails will also be sent, and if parents have opted-in for SMS text messages, they will receive a text.

For more information about AlertNow calls, including how to receive text messages and check messages online, go to http://www.pkwy.k12.mo.us/backtoschool/schoolClosings/alertNow.cfm.

Parkway Website

If school is closed, a message will appear in a yellow banner on the top of the front page of the web site; otherwise school is in session as scheduled.

Telephone Hotline - (314) 415-SNOW (7669)

Television

• KTVI Channel 2
• KMOV Channel 4
• KSDK Channel 5
• KPLR Channel 11

Radio

• KMOX 1120 AM

YMCA Snow Day Child Care

The West County YMCA provides fee-based child care on snow days for Parkway students in grades K-5 from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Bellerive Elementary School and Wren Hollow Elementary School, provided there is electrical power. Space is limited. For information, call the YMCA at (636) 532-6515, extension 261.

Factors in Determining School Closures

Our foremost concern is for the safety of our students. In addition, if a situation is questionable, we will always err on the side of caution.

When winter weather conditions warrant, our director of transportation and other administrators (including me), normally drive through different areas of the district to experience road conditions firsthand. As you may know, Parkway covers 68 square miles and portions of at least eight cities and unincorporated St. Louis County, all with varying resources and abilities to clear and maintain their streets. As we drive the district, we often find that some areas of the district receive more snow than others. Additionally, some streets may be passable, while others are quite snow-covered and slick -- particularly in the neighborhood secondary roads where our buses go. We also watch for black ice.

After driving the roads, I consult with our transportation director to get his assessment of the conditions and also take into consideration the weather predictions, time of day, wind-chill factor and highway department reports. I also consult with other superintendents in the area to get their assessments.

In addition to considering the ability of our buses to navigate the streets, I also consider that many of our high school students, who are not as experienced, drive as well. There is also consideration of younger students who must get from their homes to the bus stop and back, using sidewalks that may not be clear, forcing some students to walk on the streets in the line of traffic.

Considering all of the above, I then make the decision I believe is in the best interest of our students. It is not an exact science, but we do the best we possibly can.