Fayette County’s snow day transportation policies need work | Opinion

I am writing to express my opinion with the recent decision by Fayette County Public Schools to cancel school this week, while private schools and daycares are open. The impacts of winter storm Blair are real and I absolutely understand the cancellations last week. I understand these are incredibly hard decisions and I one hundred percent believe that school officials are doing what they think is best and for the safety and welfare of their students. Also, the district has done a fantastic job with constant communication and updates.

For families with one parent or two working parents, an unexpected day off from school is not just an inconvenience — it can be a day scrambling for childcare, or worse, a lost day of needed income. For us, it has not been a major impact, as my wife works from home and I have flexibility from work. But, for those families with hourly working parents, even if they are able to be excused from work, a day out of school can have a devastating impact on their financial viability. Also, as public schools are often sources of refuge for children, I’m always concerned when children are not allowed to attend school. A lot of times we know our schools can be a source of consistent meals and consistency.

While of course there should be caution when it comes to weather-related school closures, FCPS could implement a policy where parents who do not feel comfortable sending their children to school on weather days are allowed to voluntarily choose a NTI day. Additionally, while I understand the difficulties FCPS has with bus transportation (that daycares and private schools don’t), allowing anyone who wishes to come to school via car could also be an option. For families that rely on the bus, it is arguably more burdensome to have to provide childcare for an entire day than to pick up and drop off their kids to school. In fact, Jessamine County implemented a similar policy to this week that balances the risks of winter weather with providing the necessary services to their community. They remained open on Tuesday, while requiring alternative transportation.

These are incredibly hard decisions, but I worry that by choosing the most conservative decisions, we risk negatively impacting our kids and their families. I would implore FCPS to consider an alternate transportation plan similar to Jessamine County for these days to get kids back into school. NTI and school cancellations have certainly replaced the previous generations’ experience of walking uphill both ways.

Nate Simon is a lawyer in Lexington and a proud parent of a kindergartner (and admittedly stressed about the imminent arrival of lovely twins).