As the Valley is hit with heavy snowfall, the Mat-Su Borough School District turns to remote learning

With all of the snow the Mat-Su Borough has been receiving, and the looming threat of more to come before the end of the week, the Matanuska Susitna School Board (MSBSD) has had the heavy task of determining whether to keep schools open for in-person learning or utilize the option for remote learning.

In a letter to MSBSD staff and families, MSBSD Superintendent Dr. Randi Trani explained what has been going in to the decision-making process when determining whether or not to hold in-person classes.

“Each morning, around 3:30 a.m., safety teams canvas the Valley so the District has real time information regarding the road conditions and the safety of bus travel,” Dr. Trani wrote.

He went on to explain that those reports are compiled and the information gleaned is then shared with a team of administrators, facilities, transportation, and communication personnel in an effort to make the best decision around the ability to safely transport students on that day.

“If schools are to be closed to in-person learning, we strive to start the mass notification process by 5 a.m. because it takes approximately 30 minutes for the system to process and deliver all emails, text messages, and phone calls.

The undertaking is no small feat, given that the MSBSD boundaries encapsulate an area the size of West Virginia

“Compiling that information from different sources for an area the size of the state of West Virginia is critical because despite all of us being Alaskans and being used to driving in a little snow, we don’t all know what it is like to drive a bus in these conditions,” Dr. Trani wrote, adding, “Further, we do not all have a clear picture of what all the roads across our giant school district are like for our daily traverse of 13,500 miles of bus travel with students.”

Not everyone has been happy with the decision for remote learning. For Jesslyn Reed, mother of four, her oldest are teens while her youngest are nearly 8-year-old twins, and whose husband is currently deployed, trying to oversee the remote learning has been challenging. Especially as she works from home, remotely for a company in North Dakota.

“My husband is deployed, I’m working about 50 hours a week, and running my circus. I am not going to be a teacher too.”

“The teachers’ version of remote learning is to sign into the (web)site that may or may not work, and for them to do work. I have to help them with every step. I become the teacher, which I am not paid to be,” she says.

Reed acknowledges that she must maintain an active role her in children’s education, but teaching is not necessarily in her wheelhouse.

“Trust me, I understand I am responsible for their education, but I also know my strength is not getting them to sit and do their work,” she said.

Dr. Trani included in his letter an abbreviated report so families to see the information he and his office receives and use when deciding to have a remote learning day.

The report includes information from the Durham Transportation Services, who examine Doppler radar for precipitation, snowfall from the core areas. The bus service also looks at road plowing status for the different areas, whether or not areas are safe, have enough room for the buses and other vehicles, and the conditions of feeder roads.

The report also includes a parking lot report, and if the school parking lots have been cleared to allow for safe bus drop-off, if cars can manage, sidewalks and entryways are cleared, and if access roads are not able to support 2-lane traffic.

“We approach the prospect of transporting your children very conservatively and do not want to end up in a situation similar to what the Anchorage School District experienced yesterday with more than 30 buses stranded with students for upwards of two hours in some cases.”

He is referring to how Anchorage School District has been handling the snowfall, cancelling school for 4 straight days. District Communications Director MJ Thim said the district is aware of the hardship that closing schools can cause for families.

Thim said the district has received many questions about why students can’t learn remotely when they at home. He said the district simply wasn’t prepared for that. Teachers haven’t had time to make lesson plans, and many students turned in their school issued computers after they returned to the classroom following COVID shutdowns.

“We’re really working hard to get everyone back into the classroom, but it comes down to safety,” Thim said.

Similar to last year, MSBSD will be surveying parents after this remote learning event is complete to collect feedback.

“We know that remote learning is not the same as in-person learning, but we will continue to strive to improve that experience for students,” wrote Dr. Trani.

He also said that Anchorage School District, Kenai School District, and Juneau School District have all inquired about adopting the MSBSD model as it provides at least some real time learning rather than adding on days at the end of the year.

As for what the rest of the week holds, Dr. Trani had said that with the weather service is predicting an additional 19 inches of snow for the core area, the MSBSD crews will continue to work around the clock to clear snow, but,

“If this next round of snow materializes as predicted, we will likely be unable to open schools safely Thursday and perhaps on Friday,” before saying decisions would be made during the evening.

District officials announced Wednesday night that Thursday would be another remote learning day.

Meanwhile, Reed, and others on social media, think a throwback to school days gone by-the snow day-might not be such a bad idea during all this snow.

“What happened to waking up and finding out school has been canceled and you just get to be a kid for that day.”