School Cancelation, Delay, and Early Dismissal Procedures
Student and staff safety is always our top priority. At some point this school year, school cancelations, delays, or early dismissals will affect our schedule.
If bad weather or unforeseen circumstances force the closing of schools, we will utilize the following procedures to alert parents and staff of a delay or cancelation. Early closings and activity cancelations, due to adverse weather conditions or other emergencies, will be communicated in the same manner.
Our School Messenger system sends parents and staff emails and texts. Please be sure that your PowerSchool account is up to date to ensure the delivery of these messages.
Please avoid calling the school about cancelations, delays, or early dismissals. Unless you see an alert on our website or receive a notification through School Messenger, assume school is running as usual.
The Linn-Mar Community School District will not open when travel is too difficult to guarantee the safety of our students and staff. If you believe the weather is too hazardous for your child to attend on a day that school is being held, you may keep your child home. Please call your school’s attendance office to report the absence.
Below, you will find information regarding our general weather guidelines, ways to be notified about late starts and cancellations, our programs and activities procedures, and frequently asked questions.
Click Here for General Weather Guidelines
We will use the following guidelines regarding Cold, Heat (and Cold), and Snow Events. Decisions and notifications will be made by 5:30 a.m., when possible, for late starts and cancellations.
Cold
If the Actual temperature is -15 or colder, school will be delayed, or canceled.
If the National Weather Service issues a wind chill advisory that would be in effect at the start of the school day, there may be a two-hour delay.
- A wind chill advisory means that wind chill values are expected to fall to between -20° & -29° F.
If the National Weather Service issues a wind chill warning that would be in effect at the start of the school day, there will be a two-hour delay.
- A wind chill warning means the wind chill values are expected to fall to -30°F or lower.
If the wind chill warning is in effect beyond 11:00 AM, classes will be canceled.
Heat (and Cold) and the District’s Interruptible Power Agreement with Alliant Energy
Linn-Mar Community School District buildings are fully air conditioned, and most likely will operate on a regular school day schedule even in extreme heat by shifting activities to indoor locations or to a different time of day.
The district does have an energy-saving agreement with Alliant Energy that allows the utility to shut down power on the main campus (including Linn-Mar High School, Excelsior Middle School, Indian Creek Elementary, and the former Learning Resource Center.) Should temperatures become too extreme (cold or hot) and the utility elects to execute the terms of this agreement, the district may elect to close the buildings early.
This decision will be communicated to parents and guardians as quickly as possible, but may only be a few hours before the schedule change.
Snow
School will be canceled if heavy snow and/or icy conditions make it exceedingly hazardous or impossible for school buses to travel their routes and/or for employees and students to report to school safely. Decisions and notifications will be made by 5:30 a.m. on the morning of a cancellation. As a general practice, all activities are canceled unless otherwise noted.
These general guidelines are subject to change at the Superintendent’s discretion. Each weather situation will be assessed independently.
Click Here for Notification Outlets
Weather Cancelation/Delay Outlets
All weather-related announcements will be communicated via:
- Television:
- School Messenger
- District Website: www.linnmar.k12.ia.us (an alert will be visible on the top of the homepage)
- District Social Media:
Sign-Up For Text and Email Notifications
Linn-Mar Parents and Guardians
The best way for you to take advantage of School Messenger is to update your contact information in PowerSchool. Click here for detailed instructions.
Community Members and Staff
If you do not have a child currently in the district and are a community member and would like to receive district weather and emergency notifications alerts click here.
Create a new account by following the instructions to receive email notifications.
**Please note – if you would like to also receive text alerts, you will need to opt-in separately for mobile. Once you’re logged in, click on ‘Contact info’ and ‘add more’ button to add your cell phone number. Follow the instructions to opt-in and then select ‘District’ to receive emergency and weather related text messages.
Click Here for Canceled Programs/Activities Guidelines
TWO HOUR DELAY
Little Lions Preschool: AM Session Canceled / PM Session will be held.
Before/After School Care: Will open at the regular time (and will stay open if school is later canceled.)
Elementary/Intermediate/Middle Schools: AM Activities Canceled
High School, COMPASS, and Success Center: AM Activities Canceled
SCHOOL CANCELED
Little Lions Preschool: Canceled
Before/After School Care: Canceled
Elementary/Intermediate/Middle School Activities: Canceled
Interscholastic Competition (High School): PM activities may be canceled depending on changing weather conditions.
EARLY DISMISSAL: Prior to 10:30 a.m.
Lunch: Every effort will be made to serve the lunch meal before sending students home.
Before/After-School Care: After-School care is canceled.
Elementary/Intermediate/Middle School Activities: Canceled
Interscholastic Competition (High School): PM activities may be canceled depending on changing weather conditions.
EARLY DISMISSAL: After 10:30 a.m.
Lunch: Will be served following the early dismissal schedule.
Before/After-School Care: After-school care is canceled.
Elementary/Intermediate/Middle School Activities: Canceled
Interscholastic Competition (High School): PM activities may be canceled depending on changing weather conditions.
OTHER EMERGENCIES:
The Linn-Mar Community School District has Crisis Management Guidelines that outline procedures for all types of emergencies and incidents that might occur. Evacuation and relocation is always a possibility.
Click Here for Frequently Asked Questions
What happens when extreme weather threatens?
The safety of students and staff is the overriding, deciding factor. Since school is a safe, supervised setting for children the District tries to avoid early dismissals.
How do we decide to start, delay, or cancel?
The Superintendent decides whether or not to cancel, delay, or dismiss early. As early as possible, information about weather and road conditions is gathered from various sources – including government agencies, meteorologists, and through personal inspection by school personnel. Please refer to our General Weather Guidelines above for more information.
Why don’t all school districts make the same decision?
Sometimes road conditions in outlying areas vary from those in the city. Sometimes building conditions may vary. For example, there may be problems with heating and/or power.
How are Transportation Services impacted?
In the event of a delay or early dismissal, students normally transported in buses will be picked up and returned to the regular bus stop unless other arrangements have been previously made and communicated to the school.
What about an Energy-Related early dismissal?
The District has an energy-saving agreement with Alliant Energy to shut down power on the main campus should temperatures become too extreme (cold or hot). Buildings that would be directly affected by a power shutdown: Linn-Mar High School, Excelsior Middle School, Indian Creek Elementary, and the Learning Resource Center.
How are Parents and Staff Notified?
The list of outlets we use to notify parents and staff are listed above under the Notification Outlets tab. Please make sure your PowerSchool information is up to date to receive communication through our School Messenger System.
When will Parents and Staff be notified?
We will make every effort to notify parents and staff by 5:30 a.m. (and as early as possible if dismissing early).
When will the days be made up?
Due to the number of additional student hours already built into our school calendar, these days will not be made up later in the year. (Unless we are under the state-mandated number of hours for the school year).