SPOKANE, Wash. — The strongest winter storm of the season is expected in Spokane and the Inland Northwest this week. The National Weather Service forecast calls for 8"-12" of snow for Spokane, with higher amounts expected in north Idaho.
With that much snow on the way, parents will be watching their phones on Thursday morning for news of any school cancellations or delays.
Spokane Public School shared details about how it makes the call to cancel or delay school, on its website.
SPS has a Weather Alert Team that starts working the night before a major expected snow event. That team includes district leaders and officials from Zum buses.
At 3:00 am, Zum supervisors start driving school bus routes on the north and south sides of the city. They make reports and send recommendations to the district leadership.
At 5:00 am, the SPS superintendent and communications director hold a briefing where a final decision about the district’s status is made. If there is a cancellation or delay, the district starts the process of notifying parents and staff.
SPS does state, "If evening weather predictions indicated severe conditions or accumulations for the next morning and afternoon, there is always the possibility that a closure decision could be made sooner."
How to know if there are Spokane Public School changes
The district will notify parents and staff in several ways:
- Alerts are sent to families using the district’s notification system, including texts, calls, and emails.
- Update posted on spokaneschools.org
- Update posted on SPS Facebook page and Twitter
- You can also get updates on Up with KREM and on our school closings page on KREM.com.
Weather makeup Days
If SPS decides to cancel school because of the weather, the day will need to be made up. State law requires the district to be in session for 180 days.