School Closings or Delays

How We Communicate Schedule Changes

A pop-up alert on the District 196 website/all school websites
Phone call, text message, and email to families and staff
Posts on Facebook (@District196)
Updates on the District Information Line: 651-423-7700
Notifications to local television stations (listed as Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public Schools)
If school remains open as scheduled, no communication is sent.

If you are a community member (not a parent or staff member), you can get weather updates by joining our Weather Notification Group in ParentSquare (you will need to create a ParentSquare account).

Receive District 196 Weather Notifications

Parents and staff do not need to join the weather notification group — they will get these messages automatically.

How Weather-Related Decisions Are Made

The safety of students and staff is always our top priority. District 196 considers road conditions, visibility, snow depth, wind chill, and the forecast when deciding whether to cancel or delay school.

Cold Weather Closures: School will be canceled if the 6 a.m. forecast calls for -25°F or colder or a wind chill of -35°F or colder. Cold-weather decisions are made by 6:30 p.m. the night before. During a cold-weather closure, SAC will be offered only at predetermined sites and only to families who are already enrolled.

Families may always choose to keep their child home if they feel travel conditions are unsafe.

If school is canceled for the day
If there is a two-hour delayed start

If school is canceled for the day

No regular classes for students and the following activities are canceled:

School-Age Care (SAC);
Connections Preschool;
Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE);
Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE);
Transition Plus;
Adult Basic Education (ABE);
Community Education daytime and after-school activities, and
Elementary and middle school after-school and evening activities.

A decision about high school after-school and evening activities, and Community Education evening activities, is made and communicated on websites by mid-afternoon that day.

If there is a two-hour delayed start

School buses operate on a two-hour delayed schedule, meaning students will be picked up at their bus stop two hours later than their normal pickup time, and the following activities are canceled:

SAC (morning only);
ABE (morning only);
ECSE and ECFE (morning and afternoon);
Connections Preschool (morning and afternoon), and
Community Education activities (morning only).

After-school and evening activities are held as scheduled.

E-Learning

School may occasionally be canceled or delayed due to severe weather or hazardous driving conditions. To ensure readiness, students and staff should take their learning devices home each day.

Days 1–2: The first two inclement weather days each year will be treated as traditional snow days (no school).
Days 3–7: Beginning with the third day, students and staff will shift to an E-Learning Day from home.

E-Learning Days: Minnesota law allows school districts to have up to five E-Learning Days per school year to allow students to continue their learning from home when weather conditions make it unsafe to attend school in person. In District 196, E-Learning Days are held IF there are more than two school cancelations in one school year; the third through seventh inclement weather days, if needed, would be E-Learning Days. Any students not scheduled to have school that day do not participate in the E-Learning Day.

Student Expectations on E-Learning Days
Connecting with Teachers on E-Learning Days

Student Expectations on E-Learning Days

Students should bring their district-issued iPad or Chromebook home with them each day.

In the morning of an E-Learning Day, students should check Seesaw or Schoology for instructions from their teacher(s) on that day’s assignments and are expected to be engaged with their required learning tasks.

Students will be considered in attendance for an E-Learning Day unless a parent or guardian verifies an absence.

Teachers will communicate deadlines for E-Learning Day assignments on Seesaw or Schoology, and appropriate provisions will be made for students with IEPs and 504 plans.

Connecting with Teachers on E-Learning Days

Teachers will communicate with students through Seesaw and Schoology, and will post assignments, instructional activities and resources by 9:30 a.m. to guide students’ learning that day. There will be no synchronous (Zoom) instruction.

Teachers will be available during regular school hours to respond to student/family questions sent by email and to phone calls left on their work voicemail. There will be no synchronous (Zoom) office-hour sessions.

If a staff member is not available during an E-Learning Day due to illness or a personal day, the teacher will post a message on Seesaw or Schoology to notify students and families of their absence.

Severe Weather Preparation

The safety of our students and staff is our top priority. Our schools participate in severe weather drills and prepare for a range of possible scenarios, including disruptions to outdoor activities due to thunder and lightning, severe thunderstorms that may delay dismissal or transportation, and tornado warnings that require everyone to take shelter.

Dakota County emergency sirens (indicated by a five-minute steady tone) and weather alert radios may alert school leaders of a severe weather situation. A school administrator or designee would direct everyone to pre-designated school SHELTER areas if there is a tornado warning or high winds (> 70 mph).
Once students are assembled in a safe area, they are taught to assume a protective posture (crouched down on elbows and knees with hands over the back of the head) facing an interior wall (if possible) when danger is imminent.
If a tornado warning is in effect or the Dakota County Sirens have been activated at the end of the school day, students remain in shelter until it is safe to release. Dismissal and transportation routes may be delayed.
The district will communicate with families and staff through a phone call, text, and email.

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