Queen Anne’s County keep schools open

To close– or not to close…that is the question many school districts face– when winter weather poses a threat to the school day.

Sidney Pinder, the Director of Operations for Queen Anne’s County Schools says, “We have our transportation department out at 3:30a.m. monitoring the conditions of the roads.”

Queen Anne’s county stretches from the Chesapeake Bay all the way to the Delaware line. This means students living in one part of the county may experience snow, while the others see nothing but dry roads.
 
Pinder goes on, “We have 89 buses that transport about 7,500 students. They travel about 11,000 miles every single day throughout the county. It’s a very difficult decision and it’s not one that’s taken lightly.”

Even though the school district contacts two forms of law enforcement, three different weather services, and four state departments, they still go the extra mile with something they call “spotters.”  The spotters are QACPS bus drivers who literally “spot” out the weather in specific geographical locations throughout the county.
 
Pinder says, “A decision has to be made by five o’clock in the morning because we do have students that will be getting on the bus.” 

The Queen’s County School system believes their system is quite effective, they say Tuesday is a perfect example.

While they kept their doors open, neighboring counties were closed with barely any snow on the ground.

However, the county believes the most important part of their weather plan is of course maintaining the safety of their students faculty and staff.