Inclement Weather

When the Rockwood School District experiences inclement weather conditions, safety is the most important consideration. Below are some answers to frequently asked questions about inclement weather.

Parents

School closings, or early school dismissal, due to inclement weather will be announced on the Rockwood website as soon as the decision is made. Then, our superintendent will use Rockwood Connect to send a voicemail message and text message to Rockwood parents informing them of the decision to cancel classes.

In addition, parents who have downloaded the Rockwood app will receive a push notification. They can also find accurate information about district school closings on Rockwood's social media websites—Facebook (RockwoodSchools) and Twitter (@RockwoodSchools)—as well as on the following radio and television stations:

KMOX 1120 (AM)
KTVI Channel 2/11
KMOV Channel 4
KSDK Channel 5
ABC 30

Students

If our superintendent cancels school due to inclement weather, please note that all afterschool clubs, sports and activities are also canceled. Please contact your coach or activities director for information about the rescheduling of these afterschool events.

Community Members

If school is canceled due to inclement weather, all activities in Rockwood schools are also canceled. This includes all classes and events sponsored by Parkway-Rockwood Community Education. If you have questions about the rescheduling of these events, please view their website or call (636) 891-6644.

Frequently Asked Questions

As early as 2:30 a.m. on the morning of a snowfall or ice storm district administrators initiate "storm watch" contacts to drive throughout the district to test the roads, as well as Rockwood Transportation personnel. Even if the roads are initially satisfactory, the drivers may make several trips if snow continues to fall, or if the weather continues to deteriorate.

By 5 a.m. the Superintendent of Schools must make a decision about school cancelations so bus drivers and media can be notified. Prior to that time, the drivers keep in contact and give regular updates regarding road conditions. The Superintendent considers several factors in making the final decision: weather predictions, highway department preparedness, time of day, wind-chill factor, as well as the driver's reports.

School closings, or early school dismissal, will be announced on the Rockwood website as soon as the decision is made.

Once a decision has been made to close, the superintendent will use Rockwood Connect to send a voicemail message and text message to Rockwood parents informing them of the decision to cancel classes.

The successful delivery of information is dependent upon two things:

Accurate contact information for each student. If your contact information changes, please notify the school registrar immediately.
Technology requirements and answering machine settings. Be sure to say "Hello" when you answer the phone. The technology must hear a voice to begin the delivery of the message.

If the decision is made the night before, the Rockwood Connect messages will go out as informational messages to primary and secondary mobile phone numbers provided for each student.

If the decision to close school is made after 6 a.m. the morning of the cancellation, the Rockwood Connect messages will go out as emergency messages to all phone numbers listed for each student.

In addition, parents who have downloaded the Rockwood app will receive a push noticfation. They can also find accurate information about district school closings on Rockwood's social media websites - Facebook (RockwoodSchools) and Twitter (@RockwoodSchools) as well as on the following radio and television stations:

KMOX 1120 (AM)
KTVI Channel 2/11
KMOV Channel 4
KSDK Channel 5
ABC 30

If severe weather strikes while students are in school, a decision to close school for the remainder of the day may be made. Activating the transportation system due to inclement weather takes time. School principals, the transportation department and Missouri Central bus services will be contacted immediately. Transporting students safely will require carefully planned dismissal procedures.

Elementary students who walk or ride buses will be dismissed as per the instructions provided by parents for an early inclement dismissal situation.
Students will be released as soon as individual Rockwood and Missouri Central buses are available at their school.
Buses will load students according to the normal dismissal order.
All students picked up by parents may leave school as soon as parents arrive.

Typically, activities will be canceled when school has been closed all day or closed early. Please check the district website, or your school's website, for specific information.

Parents of elementary school children need to make sure that the instructions on your emergency dismissal form are current.
Contact your childcare facility, if necessary, to find out what their procedures are for inclement weather.
Review the information you have listed as emergency contacts and make sure that the numbers are updated, either through Infinite Campus or with your building registrar.
Make plans ahead of time and communicate them with your children so they understand what to expect during an early school dismissal due to inclement weather.
Understand that school closings are for the safety of children throughout the district. While the condition of your neighborhood streets may be fine, other areas of the district may be experiencing harsher weather.

In the event of deteriorating weather conditions, the district will make the announcement to cancel CCL classes and keep students in their home school for the day.

If weather conditions deteriorate quickly, and CCL classes have not been cancelled for the day, students will be picked up by buses at the CCL and delivered to the home schools so they can be taken home on regular routes.