Anonymous wrote:Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

This post remarkably captures the ridiculous, unreasonable expectations by some Montgomery County residents.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This seems to be because MCPS takes on the liability burden of getting students to school, whereas other systems do not. Are there creative ways to work around that? Waiver for bus riding/attendance? Optional open days?

Because they do have a liability. Letting kids get on at stops that you know are unsafe is a liability. You can't just waive everything away, especially if the consequence is missed work--that's duress.

The stops aren't unsafe. Just inconvenient. Walk over the snow. There are tracks to follow.

We cannot get to the bus stop. There is a cut through on an unsafe street. No way to climb over the mound not wait or even get to the bus. No place to even drive and park for the bus to come.

You can walk around the snow mound at the corner. Don't be so helpless. Do you give up when faced with any minor challenge?

DP. It’s really weird that you want schoolchildren endangering themselves standing in the street just to get to school. I understand why people are frustrated that schools aren’t ready to open, but I don’t understand the utter lack of concern for the kids who would navigate bus routes and walker paths in these *actual* conditions. I’ve lived in New England. No, a storm like this wouldn’t taken down a week plus of school. No, children wouldn’t be getting to school in these conditions. The routes are clear there.

No, cities and townships in NE don't have armies of people who clear sidewalks at every intersection. Nor do they clear every bus stop. That simply isn't possible to do. Some will always just have to wait until it melts, which could be weeks or months away. The kids just walk over the snow. That works here, too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

+1
One of our neighborhood street isn’t plowed still.

It will drive many families crazy if no school at all for the next week. All other offices and stores in the county are opened, except mcps.

It’s called knowing your neighborhoods. MoCo knows the clearing schedule and can coordinate with MCPS to offer alternative safe pickup spots. For those kids absolutely snowed in or where it’s still unsafe, then virtual is the answer.

MCPS can’t remain closed just because there are a small number of streets that still have issues. If private schools are open, MCPS should be open. MoCo has far more snow and ice clearing assets than any private school.

DP. I’m still pretty skeptical about buses getting around, but we’ll see how the next few days go. The issue is the narrow paths on some of the bus routes here in DTSS.

And I get it— this second week is concerning. I am home with my kids and have full flexibility but they would benefit from the routine next week. It is just really, really bad still in this part of the county. And its not just one issue, it’s many: the extent to which parking lots have been cleared, the lack of clear bus routes, the disappearance of bus stops, the lack of space that isn’t in the middle of already narrow streets to walk.

What is already open at this stage in the storm is highly variable. Local colleges are still closed, which is unusual. It’s not like everything is running business as usual (yet).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

+1
One of our neighborhood street isn’t plowed still.

It will drive many families crazy if no school at all for the next week. All other offices and stores in the county are opened, except mcps.

It’s called knowing your neighborhoods. MoCo knows the clearing schedule and can coordinate with MCPS to offer alternative safe pickup spots. For those kids absolutely snowed in or where it’s still unsafe, then virtual is the answer.

MCPS can’t remain closed just because there are a small number of streets that still have issues. If private schools are open, MCPS should be open. MoCo has far more snow and ice clearing assets than any private school.

I live in Rockville and drove through 5 neighborhoods this morning. All were as described: tough for buses to navigate and no safe place for kids to wait for the bus. This is widespread.

Are grades still due the first day back, or has that guidance changed?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

+1
One of our neighborhood street isn’t plowed still.

It will drive many families crazy if no school at all for the next week. All other offices and stores in the county are opened, except mcps.

It’s called knowing your neighborhoods. MoCo knows the clearing schedule and can coordinate with MCPS to offer alternative safe pickup spots. For those kids absolutely snowed in or where it’s still unsafe, then virtual is the answer.

MCPS can’t remain closed just because there are a small number of streets that still have issues. If private schools are open, MCPS should be open. MoCo has far more snow and ice clearing assets than any private school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

+1
One of our neighborhood street isn’t plowed still.

It will drive many families crazy if no school at all for the next week. All other offices and stores in the county are opened, except mcps.

Anonymous wrote:Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

+1
One of our neighborhood street isn’t plowed still.

Schools need to be closed for all of next week.

Sidewalks not touched
Bus stops are mounds of ice with no place for kids to safely stand
Neighbor hood roads are not plowed full width. Buses won’t be able to maneuver along some of them.

Anonymous wrote:We cannot get to the bus stop. There is a cut through on an unsafe street. No way to climb over the mound not wait or even get to the bus. No place to even drive and park for the bus to come.

If you have the time flexibility to drive and park and wait for the bus to come -- and it sounds like you do -- then you could drive your kid all the way to the school. Or you and your neighbors could get out this weekend and start breaking ice/shoveling so kids can stand at the bus stop. But let me guess: you're more interested in problems than solutions.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This seems to be because MCPS takes on the liability burden of getting students to school, whereas other systems do not. Are there creative ways to work around that? Waiver for bus riding/attendance? Optional open days?

Because they do have a liability. Letting kids get on at stops that you know are unsafe is a liability. You can't just waive everything away, especially if the consequence is missed work--that's duress.

The stops aren't unsafe. Just inconvenient. Walk over the snow. There are tracks to follow.

We cannot get to the bus stop. There is a cut through on an unsafe street. No way to climb over the mound not wait or even get to the bus. No place to even drive and park for the bus to come.

You can walk around the snow mound at the corner. Don't be so helpless. Do you give up when faced with any minor challenge?

DP. It’s really weird that you want schoolchildren endangering themselves standing in the street just to get to school. I understand why people are frustrated that schools aren’t ready to open, but I don’t understand the utter lack of concern for the kids who would navigate bus routes and walker paths in these *actual* conditions. I’ve lived in New England. No, a storm like this wouldn’t taken down a week plus of school. No, children wouldn’t be getting to school in these conditions. The routes are clear there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This seems to be because MCPS takes on the liability burden of getting students to school, whereas other systems do not. Are there creative ways to work around that? Waiver for bus riding/attendance? Optional open days?

Because they do have a liability. Letting kids get on at stops that you know are unsafe is a liability. You can't just waive everything away, especially if the consequence is missed work--that's duress.

The stops aren't unsafe. Just inconvenient. Walk over the snow. There are tracks to follow.

We cannot get to the bus stop. There is a cut through on an unsafe street. No way to climb over the mound not wait or even get to the bus. No place to even drive and park for the bus to come.

You can walk around the snow mound at the corner. Don't be so helpless. Do you give up when faced with any minor challenge?

Just jump over the cars driving around the mound that can’t see you. Good luck.

As someone who lives in Frederick (but works in Moco), there has been a lot of growth in the county. With said growth comes HOAs. My neighborhood falls within city limits, so the city plowed us out within 1/2 a day of the snow ending. The HOA paid for all sidewalks to be cleared by noon on Monday. As much as I hate my HOA, for snow removal they do a great job. I feel like the school system there is very focused on the neighborhood sidewalks/bus stops being cleared. I do think they had used a day prior to this storm, while Moco didn’t.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

So many Frederick Co parents are unhappy with the decision for tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see their attendance rates. I have heard some parts of Carroll Co are okay, but they would have far less walkers than MCPS.

Frederick could change to closed after they assess the conditions in the morning. Also smaller than Montgomery County.

You seem confused. The conditions aren't going to magically change for the worse overnight.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This seems to be because MCPS takes on the liability burden of getting students to school, whereas other systems do not. Are there creative ways to work around that? Waiver for bus riding/attendance? Optional open days?

Because they do have a liability. Letting kids get on at stops that you know are unsafe is a liability. You can't just waive everything away, especially if the consequence is missed work--that's duress.

The stops aren't unsafe. Just inconvenient. Walk over the snow. There are tracks to follow.

We cannot get to the bus stop. There is a cut through on an unsafe street. No way to climb over the mound not wait or even get to the bus. No place to even drive and park for the bus to come.

You can walk around the snow mound at the corner. Don't be so helpless. Do you give up when faced with any minor challenge?