District details emergency snow removal, says storm added three school days

District operations staff told the board a severe winter storm forced extensive emergency snow removal, prompted the use of dump trucks and payloaders to remove piled snow, and led the district to add three school days to the academic calendar.

Doctor White described the response, saying crews made multiple passes, then performed removal using dump trucks after snow accumulations—"16 inches of snow" in places—and an unexpected overnight ice event complicated reopening plans. White said the district used city-directed dump sites including Marginal Drive and some campus lots and that staff focused on clearing bus aprons, drop-off areas and pedestrian routes for student safety.

"This was a very expensive storm for us," Doctor White said, adding that crews worked on multiple passes and that some lots had dozens of parked cars that complicated removal efforts. White said the district had to add three school days to the year because of the snow and follow-up ice.

Miss Downer thanked staff and urged the district to examine whether more snow-removal work could be brought in-house to cut costs; Doctor White and others said conversations with the city’s public works department indicated tradeoffs between clearing streets and schools in intense storms and that DPW capacity is limited. White said staff will present backup documentation on emergency contracts and costs at the next Finance & Legal meeting.

Chair Wilcox requested the detailed backup, and Doctor Negron said staff would verify and share figures; off the phone Negron said staff had identified roughly $421,000 in legal-related expenses last year tied to outside counsel invoices and that the team would re-check allocations before reporting final numbers.

The board did not take a separate final vote on the calendar change during this brief session; staff said they would present full documentation and any required approvals at upcoming Finance & Legal and full-board meetings.