Winter Storm Weather Announcements will be broadcast over the following radio and television stations:
Radio Stations
KASM 1150 am Albany
KEYL 1400 am Long Prairie
KCLD 104.7 FM St. Cloud
KIK 100.7 FM Alexandria
WCCO 830 am Minneapolis
Television Stations
WCCO Channel 4
KSTP Channel 5
KMSP Channel 9
KARE Channel 11
School Closing Criteria
Closing school due to poor weather conditions is always a difficult decision. Although our primary mission is to educate students, we are very concerned with the safe transportation of our students to and from school. Consideration is given to weather reports, visibility, wind, existing snow, road conditions, temperature, daylight hours, and highway department recommendations. In deciding to close or postpone school, Melrose Area Public Schools consults with the bus companies and a number of weather sites and surrounding school districts to determine whether or not it is safe to transport students. Consideration for closing schools due to temperature will be considered when there is a sustained wind chill of -45. We will make every effort to post decisions before 6:00 a.m.
PLEASE NOTE that at any time during inclement weather, parents have the option of keeping their children at home. However, we are confident in our bussing service to pick up students in a timely fashion in warm, safe buses. Parents should dress their children appropriately for inclement weather.
The BEST way to receive timely notices regarding school closure is through the School App that can be downloaded on your cell phone for free. Along with the school app, parents will receive a text message and emails if the appropriate boxes are checked on their school information. At this time, we will not send out any voicemails to landlines. It is always recommended to check with a couple of different sources in case one should fail. The school will always do a test of this system on the Thursday of MEA. Make sure all the information the school has is current.
What Parents Should Do:
Listen, watch, or check online for weather-related school announcements. Please do not call the school, school personnel, or the bus companies. These phone lines are being used for or must be kept available for the weather emergency. If everyone calls, it is impossible to make the necessary notifications. The decision to have school during inclement weather has to do with the school's ability to safely transport students, however, if a parent feels that it is unsafe for their child to come to school, the parent should keep their child home. The final decision to send a child to school during inclement weather rests with the parent.
2 Hour Late Start
In the event of a 2-hour late start, all morning Early Childhood classes are canceled.
Early Closings
Notice of an early closing will be given by the same sources as listed above. Parents must have alternate childcare plans made and clearly explained to their children. It is important for parents to review these plans with their young children. If your children are to go home and there is no one there, make sure they have a key to get in your house and adequate supervision.
All Community Ed. classes will also be canceled for early closings.
Extra-Curricular Activities
When school is canceled because of inclement weather, normally all extracurricular activities are canceled as well. There may be very rare circumstances whereby some extracurricular practices/events may be held. It remains the parent's decision whether or not to have their student(s) participate in these practices. No student will be penalized in any way for not participating on a day when school has been canceled. When school is closed early because of inclement weather, all extracurricular activities will be canceled. Students are to go directly home.