APS Thursday

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So why are we closed again? Please tell me there’s a terrible winter storm just out of view if my house, where it is raining ☔️

Because at the time they had to make the call the forecast called for 1-2” of snow right at bus pickup time. In the past there was a bus accident in this same scenario.

It ducks but it was the right call with the info they had at the time.

They didn’t have to make the call last night.

I know, Baby. You’re thinking about YOU. There are lots of other angrier, pissier versions of you, that would have a conniption with a last-minute call. They can’t win, see?

Those people lack planning skills and shouldn’t be rewarded for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Exactly. And if their childcare falls through then they get a taxpayer paid day off while the rest of us burn leave or scramble to find alternative arrangements.

What you are failing to see is that APS is reacting to teachers using their leave as needed. You can’t compare your office drone job that can go on with or without you for a day. If you aren’t there and take a day of leave your company can still operate without you. It’s not APS school staff fault that teachers are using their earned leave for childcare when other districts close which then puts APS in a bind and unable to operate because they can’t operate with less than a certain number of staff to supervise kids. Then APS has to make a decision on if they can operate.

And we can’t act like decisions of other counties, especially one as large as FCPS with over 180,000 students, won’t impact APS which is tiny comparatively. A large portion of APS staff lives in Fairfax and Alexandria.

+1

Clueless complainers complaining again…

What if pilots, nurses, doctors, EMTs, police, garbage collectors used their leave as needed en masse every time they had a childcare hiccup?

Teachers just don’t view themselves as essential and don’t act like they are. And they make more money than most of the professions listed above. So it’s not that. It’s just how they are treated and think of themselves.

Have you flown lately? Flights are getting cancelled left and right because the airline staff are taking sick leave. Hello?!

Different situation. Follow along. Post was about teachers calling out sick due to childcare created by surrounding districts not opening.

What I’m trying to tell you, is that that always happened before CoVID, and APS could open, no problem. It is because of the CoVID related absences on top of it. And it was ONE day. One.

It was the end of the full week off we just had too, so not just one day. And yes we all understand this is why and the point is the underlying mindset is problematic. They could just cover for it better before.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So why are we closed again? Please tell me there’s a terrible winter storm just out of view if my house, where it is raining ☔️

Because at the time they had to make the call the forecast called for 1-2” of snow right at bus pickup time. In the past there was a bus accident in this same scenario.

It ducks but it was the right call with the info they had at the time.

They didn’t have to make the call last night.

I know, Baby. You’re thinking about YOU. There are lots of other angrier, pissier versions of you, that would have a conniption with a last-minute call. They can’t win, see?

I hope those parents will all be happy when their kids are doing virtual school later this winter.

[Anonymous]

Ugh, quite the “snow day” we are having.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Exactly. And if their childcare falls through then they get a taxpayer paid day off while the rest of us burn leave or scramble to find alternative arrangements.

What you are failing to see is that APS is reacting to teachers using their leave as needed. You can’t compare your office drone job that can go on with or without you for a day. If you aren’t there and take a day of leave your company can still operate without you. It’s not APS school staff fault that teachers are using their earned leave for childcare when other districts close which then puts APS in a bind and unable to operate because they can’t operate with less than a certain number of staff to supervise kids. Then APS has to make a decision on if they can operate.

And we can’t act like decisions of other counties, especially one as large as FCPS with over 180,000 students, won’t impact APS which is tiny comparatively. A large portion of APS staff lives in Fairfax and Alexandria.

+1

Clueless complainers complaining again…

What if pilots, nurses, doctors, EMTs, police, garbage collectors used their leave as needed en masse every time they had a childcare hiccup?

Teachers just don’t view themselves as essential and don’t act like they are. And they make more money than most of the professions listed above. So it’s not that. It’s just how they are treated and think of themselves.

Have you flown lately? Flights are getting cancelled left and right because the airline staff are taking sick leave. Hello?!

Different situation. Follow along. Post was about teachers calling out sick due to childcare created by surrounding districts not opening.

What I’m trying to tell you, is that that always happened before CoVID, and APS could open, no problem. It is because of the CoVID related absences on top of it. And it was ONE day. One.

It was the end of the full week off we just had too, so not just one day. And yes we all understand this is why and the point is the underlying mindset is problematic. They could just cover for it better before.

Stop with that nonsense. People have to take leave because of their kids in every industry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Exactly. And if their childcare falls through then they get a taxpayer paid day off while the rest of us burn leave or scramble to find alternative arrangements.

What you are failing to see is that APS is reacting to teachers using their leave as needed. You can’t compare your office drone job that can go on with or without you for a day. If you aren’t there and take a day of leave your company can still operate without you. It’s not APS school staff fault that teachers are using their earned leave for childcare when other districts close which then puts APS in a bind and unable to operate because they can’t operate with less than a certain number of staff to supervise kids. Then APS has to make a decision on if they can operate.

And we can’t act like decisions of other counties, especially one as large as FCPS with over 180,000 students, won’t impact APS which is tiny comparatively. A large portion of APS staff lives in Fairfax and Alexandria.

+1

Clueless complainers complaining again…

What if pilots, nurses, doctors, EMTs, police, garbage collectors used their leave as needed en masse every time they had a childcare hiccup?

Teachers just don’t view themselves as essential and don’t act like they are. And they make more money than most of the professions listed above. So it’s not that. It’s just how they are treated and think of themselves.

Have you flown lately? Flights are getting cancelled left and right because the airline staff are taking sick leave. Hello?!

Different situation. Follow along. Post was about teachers calling out sick due to childcare created by surrounding districts not opening.

What I’m trying to tell you, is that that always happened before CoVID, and APS could open, no problem. It is because of the CoVID related absences on top of it. And it was ONE day. One.

It was the end of the full week off we just had too, so not just one day. And yes we all understand this is why and the point is the underlying mindset is problematic. They could just cover for it better before.

The rest were because of weather.

[Anonymous]

I too would believe the narrative if Arlington would come clean and say it’s either due to teacher shortage from fairfax but they chose to only say weather during morning. If even this was true then a 2 hr delay would work. They are being way way too risk averse for any humidity falling from sky- which as of 8am is rain. Arlington county school board is the worst.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I too would believe the narrative if Arlington would come clean and say it’s either due to teacher shortage from fairfax but they chose to only say weather during morning. If even this was true then a 2 hr delay would work. They are being way way too risk averse for any humidity falling from sky- which as of 8am is rain. Arlington county school board is the worst.

What if it really is just a bad weather call??

By the way, I’m sure you’d be the first to b-tch if your kid had to sit on a bus for two hours, right? Let’s be real here.

[Anonymous]

You could be in FCCPS where they DID wait to make the call and cancelled school after they knew it would be a rain day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Exactly. And if their childcare falls through then they get a taxpayer paid day off while the rest of us burn leave or scramble to find alternative arrangements.

What you are failing to see is that APS is reacting to teachers using their leave as needed. You can’t compare your office drone job that can go on with or without you for a day. If you aren’t there and take a day of leave your company can still operate without you. It’s not APS school staff fault that teachers are using their earned leave for childcare when other districts close which then puts APS in a bind and unable to operate because they can’t operate with less than a certain number of staff to supervise kids. Then APS has to make a decision on if they can operate.

And we can’t act like decisions of other counties, especially one as large as FCPS with over 180,000 students, won’t impact APS which is tiny comparatively. A large portion of APS staff lives in Fairfax and Alexandria.

If you run a public service that must be staffed (which I do, not a school) it is common and understood that the service stays open and not all leave requests get approved. Staff know there has to be coverage for them to have leave approved. Sure they could, on a day like this, lie and call in sick. But when you set the expectations and culture that not all leave requests will be approved, the public service is going to open, your colleagues are showing up and if you don’t you’re leaving them in a lurch… people behave differently and somehow manage to figure it out.

Do you think hospitals, doctor’s offices, libraries, grocery stores, or anything much else will be closed today? No. People who are supposed to work will figure it out.

This. There is now an expectation that if enough of them call out they’ll get the paid snow day. What incentive is there for them to pay for snow day camps, backup sitters, ask their spouse to take off, etc.? We act as if it’s impossible for APS to do what many other organizations do. And don’t just disregard “complainers” as being in the office working class and not understanding. Do you think hourly workers have the luxury of just calling out and not losing their jobs? Somehow grocery stores will manage to stay staffed. Essential workers have to figure out a way to go in.

APS has now created a certain culture of catering to leave requests that could be hard to overcome. We weren’t bound to larger jurisdictions like Fairfax and Loudoun when it came to reopening schools more days last year, but now we are tying our decisions to them when they close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Duran must go

Because the world got covid and the weather? Okay.

[Anonymous]

Look, this was probably the wrong call today- they should have done a 2 hour delay and reassessed in the morning but APS isn’t an outlier here- everyone is closed- even FCC. This is a case where the forecast didn’t match what actually happened- which is part of meteorology…

[Anonymous]

My 10 yo just woke up and is so pissed off about today’s snow day. She really dislikes virtual learning, and is frustrated that the next time we get snow, she will be sitting in her room doing virtual school instead of playing in the snow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Exactly. And if their childcare falls through then they get a taxpayer paid day off while the rest of us burn leave or scramble to find alternative arrangements.

What you are failing to see is that APS is reacting to teachers using their leave as needed. You can’t compare your office drone job that can go on with or without you for a day. If you aren’t there and take a day of leave your company can still operate without you. It’s not APS school staff fault that teachers are using their earned leave for childcare when other districts close which then puts APS in a bind and unable to operate because they can’t operate with less than a certain number of staff to supervise kids. Then APS has to make a decision on if they can operate.

And we can’t act like decisions of other counties, especially one as large as FCPS with over 180,000 students, won’t impact APS which is tiny comparatively. A large portion of APS staff lives in Fairfax and Alexandria.

If you run a public service that must be staffed (which I do, not a school) it is common and understood that the service stays open and not all leave requests get approved. Staff know there has to be coverage for them to have leave approved. Sure they could, on a day like this, lie and call in sick. But when you set the expectations and culture that not all leave requests will be approved, the public service is going to open, your colleagues are showing up and if you don’t you’re leaving them in a lurch… people behave differently and somehow manage to figure it out.

Do you think hospitals, doctor’s offices, libraries, grocery stores, or anything much else will be closed today? No. People who are supposed to work will figure it out.

This. There is now an expectation that if enough of them call out they’ll get the paid snow day. What incentive is there for them to pay for snow day camps, backup sitters, ask their spouse to take off, etc.? We act as if it’s impossible for APS to do what many other organizations do. And don’t just disregard “complainers” as being in the office working class and not understanding. Do you think hourly workers have the luxury of just calling out and not losing their jobs? Somehow grocery stores will manage to stay staffed. Essential workers have to figure out a way to go in.

APS has now created a certain culture of catering to leave requests that could be hard to overcome. We weren’t bound to larger jurisdictions like Fairfax and Loudoun when it came to reopening schools more days last year, but now we are tying our decisions to them when they close.

I guess y’all don’t go to the library much. Not big readers, I take it?

https://library.arlingtonva.us/2022/01/17/operations-update-covid-19-related-staffing-shortages/

The stuff you’re talking about is nonsense. For years and years and years APS has been fully operational during weather events when other districts have not been. In every industry, you have folks that must use their leave to care for their children at some time or another. APS is no different. However, in the middle of a pandemic, things happen, and that closure, that once, did affect their ability of operate that Thursday. You guys are going to believe what you want to, but this stuff about teachers not wanting to come to work is just not true. Flights have been cancelled. Supply chains broken down. But God forbid your children’s teachers should get a pass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Look, this was probably the wrong call today- they should have done a 2 hour delay and reassessed in the morning but APS isn’t an outlier here- everyone is closed- even FCC. This is a case where the forecast didn’t match what actually happened- which is part of meteorology…

Which is why the deadline for making the announcement is 5 am day-of, not 5 pm the night before.