Three schools — Clark-Shawnee Local, the Northeastern school campus and Southeastern Local — all closed Wednesday.
Clark-Shawnee Superintendent Brian Kuhn said the goal is to be in school when they can be, but the impact of the the storms caused safety concerns.
“The decision to close was ultimately based on a number of roads closed in our school district, number of downed power lines and power poles in our school district, and our inability to access large areas of our district by bus,” he said. “We remain in contact with first responders and the EMA and will stay in touch with them to determine what progress was made throughout the day, and what restrictions or limitations will be” today.
Kuhn said they know weather events like this can impact students and staff, so counseling will be available for those that need any support.
“Our hearts go out to not only our community but any family or individual that was impacted by this. We know this was a tragic and overwhelming event for those homes and lives that were impacted in a significant way,” Kuhn said. “Our appreciation goes out to our local Springfield Twp. and Clark County first responders who are out there serving folks and making sure people are safe and needs are attended to.”
Northeastern is also waiting to see how the clean-up process will go before determining “what further actions are necessary,” and will likely make a decision this morning. Counseling will also be available, as it is any other day, for those who need it.
“We have some staff and students who reside in the affected area, and we are also waiting to see how we can support them and what that entails,” said Superintendent John Kronour.
Southeastern Superintendent David Shea said the district mainly closed because of the road closures, but expects to be open today.
Greenon and Tecumseh Local Schools had two-hour delays Wednesday morning, with only a few road closures and concerns with bus routes, but will help other districts however needed.
“Our two-hour delay (Wednesday) morning was primarily due to the road closures caused by recent storm damage. Ensuring the safety of our students is our first priority, and we wanted to ensure that our transportation routes were as safe as possible,” said Superintendent Darrin Knapke. “We recognize that neighboring districts have experienced even greater damage, and we want to extend our support to them during this time. We have reached out to offer assistance and stand ready to support them in any way needed.”
Global Impact STEM Academy was the only local school that had normal operations. Founding Director Josh Jennings said the storms didn’t affect the collective student body in a concentrated area since they are “pretty spread out across the county,” but the school did have one student affected.
“We do have one student who lost a lot, and we have already been out to the home with out school resource officer and started to collect some items that they will need in the short term,” he said.
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