Patch Users React to STMA Closing Schools Not Long Before Start Time

Community members reacted to the weather related closure of St. Michael-Albertville Schools Thursday, April 11 on the St. Michael Patch Facebook page with more than 100 comments posted within two hours of school closure announcement.  

Read more about the closure decision here.

Here’s a sample of some of the comments:

Katie 'Lavigne' Turpin - strange to cancel 30 min before it starts and not alert parents!!! whats up with that??

Lynn Schrafft Dishneau - My kindergartner got on the bus and she just came back. What if I left???

Matt Breanna Sundell - Ya all the kids in my neighborhood sat at the bus stop for almost 20 min waiting because there was no notification til one if us called the school! No email no call and not on the news! Not to happy!

Jennifer Bennett Saxe - You have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!!! The busses have already picked up the kids. Not cool!!! It's not like this weather snuck up on anyone. Seems lie a decision could have been made much sooner.

Alicia Harris - What? What happens to the kids that got picked up? I was pretty upset it was not delayed and now closing after kids get picked up?

Erica Broeckel Gindele - They said they sent the buses out, and the driving conditions were bad and quickly getting worse. I imagine the drivers felt it was unsafe. Difficult decision to make at that point, but the safe one!

Greg Cowan - Why was there NO phone call or email from the Schools regarding the cancellation this morning? Also, why did the decision come so late that students were already on the bus? Many parents leave for work immediately following their child boarding the bus. This is a huge safety issue for the schools by returning children to their home if there is nobody home for the child once they are returned! It's not very often I say this, but I am VERY DISAPPOINTED with the district today!!!

Aimee Peterson Libby - We have to remember how ticked off parents were last time a "huge storm" was predicted and school was called off (with plenty of warning) and then we got pretty much NOTHING. Yep, the school district can't win. Nor can they predict the weather or trust the weather reports. You just never know.

Teresa Steinbach  - Weather reports from 5pm - 10pm yesterday started downplaying the storm, saying we weren't going to get as much snow as originally thought, and that the morning commute was going to be not that bad. Obviously, mother nature changed her mind and conditions got bad rather quickly, catching STMA district off guard and having to make a haste last minute decision. Can't totally blame them.

Heather Eide Cowan - Shouldn't the Bus Company ALSO train/remind their drivers to help ensure the safety of the children when something like this happens? Our bus driver actually STOPPED in front of the children's home and waited UNTIL a parent opened the door before she went on to the next house. GREAT JOB & a HUGE THANK YOU to DAWN!!