Inclement Weather
Inclement weather is bound to occur each school year. Knowing in advance how FGSD makes decisions surrounding inclement weather issues and communicates its decisions can be very beneficial.
Please make sure that your contact information is current with the district by contacting your student's school office. If you have students at multiple schools, you only need to have one school make the change as there is just one master parent record for each parent in our student information system.
District decisions with regard to inclement weather are shared through the communication channels listed below. Please be sure to follow FGSD on social media, bookmark district/school websites and sign up for alerts to ensure you receive the latest information.
- District and school websites - All weather related information and updates will be placed in the “Recent News” section on the front page of the district and individual school websites.
- Facebook and Twitter - The District’s Facebook and Twitter pages are immediately updated when a weather delay/closure or other emergency message is sent out via FlashAlert. We will also use these sites to post additional information as needed.
- FlashAlert - FlashAlert is the system most local school districts and public agencies use to inform the media about weather-related delays, emergency situations and breaking news. You can subscribe to Flash Alert by visiting www.flashalert.net, clicking on View Local News, then Portland/Vanc/Salem, then Washington Co. Schools, then Forest Grove School District. Follow the steps to set up your account.
Decision-Making Process With Regard to Inclement Weather
The safety of students is the primary consideration for any decision regarding snow routes, delayed start, school cancellation or district closure. Making decisions about how to react to predicted or an actual weather event is difficult. In the Forest Grove School district, we have have several different elevation areas which may receive different weather conditions.
The District subscribes to a weather monitoring service that provides detailed forecasts and recommendations to our specific area. When the forecast calls for snow, ice or freezing rain, personnel from MidCo Bus company begin to drive the roads around 3 a.m. to assess road conditions and bus routes. They then report their findings back to the Superintendent. District staff then analyze all available information—from the actual conditions on the roads and observable weather at the time, to the forecast, predictions, and degree of confidence for weather changes over the course of the school day—and make decisions about how to proceed.
For weather-related events, schools are either all open or all closed. In the event of disruptions to transportation services (school delayed start or closing) due to weather, the school district will notify the public through the communication channels listed below and local media. Specific bus routes affected would be specified in the announcements.