BARBARA NORDBY Star-Tribune staff writer | Posted: Friday, March 30, 2007 12:00 am
Concern for safety had Natrona County school officials keeping schools open during the snowstorm, and concern for safety had many parents keeping their children home.
"I'm not going to have him out there on the streets to get killed," said Diane Fink, whose son Austin, 16, drives his younger sister to school each day at Dean Morgan Junior High before heading over to Natrona County High School.
Fink drove early Thursday morning to her job in the county assessor's office, and called her children to tell them to stay home.
She disagreed with the district's efforts to keep school in session.
"I really, really thought that they'd close them today," she said. "It's not the school system's problem to be a day care."
The district's policy is to keep schools open whenever possible, both for learning and to provide a safe place for children, but to let parents make the call as to whether it's prudent to send their children. Parents made decisions based on whether they work and how far they live from school, principals said Thursday.
"They're safer here than they are at home alone," said Mari Stoll, co-principal at McKinley-Westwood School.
About a third of the school's students stayed home Thursday, she said.
"A whole lot of parents called this morning," she said. "They were just asking if school was in session, and once we said it was in session they asked if the buses were running," which they were. Still, many kept their children home. "They just didn't want to get out in this weather."
Students at McKinley-Westwood stayed inside for recess. About a dozen parents came to the school early to pick their children up by mid-afternoon. The school cancelled after-school programs and its Boys and Girls Club program.
Loretta Hamilton in the attendance office at Kelly Walsh High School couldn't say exactly how many students had stayed home. After-school sports and activities at Kelly Walsh and other schools were cancelled.
She said, "We've just had a lot of calls, but we do have a lot of kids here."
Students who live in rural areas tended to stay home, she said.
"If they're on the outskirts of Casper, it's just too dangerous."
Only about 25 students of 180 at Poison Spider School west of Casper came to class Thursday, principal Tammy Kelly said.
"Most people were concerned if they get them out here, they wouldn't be able to come get them," Kelly said. "This is the worst we've ever had," as far as low attendance, she said.
For the first time ever Kelly gave her own two children the choice, and the fifth- and seventh-graders decided to go with her to school.
Students who did make it to Poison Spider took PAWS tests, made up late work and kept busy with reading and math activities and indoor recess.
Kelly said in some families parents who work have no place to leave their children. But with buses not running to the rural school, other families would have had a hard time getting there.
"I told parents it was totally up to them," Kelly said. "We weren't going to count it against their kids if they didn't come."