Emergency Communications

Announcements

January 10 @ 6:15 p.m.: George Mayne Elementary School has received the “all clear” to resume normal operations. We look forward to seeing your student at school tomorrow morning!
January 10 @ 6:15 a.m.: George Mayne Elementary School is CLOSED today, Tuesday, January 10, 2023 due to a power outage at the campus.
January 5 @ 3:30 p.m.: Briarwood Elementary School has received the “all clear” to resume normal operations. We look forward to seeing your student at school tomorrow morning!
- Ponderosa Elementary School has received the “all clear” to resume normal operations. We look forward to seeing your student at school tomorrow morning!
January 5 @ 10:15 a.m.: Briarwood Elementary School has closed for underground service line repairs. All families are asked to pick their children up from their classrooms as soon as possible.
January 5 @ 6:00 a.m.: With the exception of Ponderosa Elementary School, all Santa Clara Unified schools and activities are open today, Thursday, January 5, 2023. Ponderosa Elementary School is closed today due to continued power outages at that campus.
January 4 @ 12:45 p.m.: As you are aware, the Bay Area will be impacted by a major storm today and tomorrow, SCCOE Emergency Advisory. The District is taking precautions to prepare for the storm. Based on weather forecasts from multiple sources, including the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), it appears that the heaviest rain and winds will arrive this afternoon and extend into the evening hours.

Out of an abundance of caution, all school events, practices, and meetings after 3:00 p.m. are canceled for January 4, 2023. Your student’s school will be in communication with you directly regarding rescheduling any canceled events.

Resources to monitor local conditions are provided below.

Please take good care and exercise caution if you need to travel this evening.
Valley Water's Are You Flood Ready
Santa Clara County OEM
National Weather Service
Sign Up for Santa Clara County Safety Alerts (AlertSCC)

School Closings, Delays, and Early Dismissals

The following information provides the plans in the event that Santa Clara Unified School District schools have to close, dismiss early, or delay opening due to weather or any other unforeseen situation. The Superintendent makes the decision based on information from multiple sources including the weather service, the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), the Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE), the local police departments, the safety manager, the transportation manager, and the maintenance and operations director.

In order to ensure that timely communication is effective, we ask families and employees to do the following:

Ensure that the district has current cell phone numbers, home phone numbers, and personal email addresses. We will use this information to provide automated phone calls, text messages, and emails.
Install the ParentSquare app on your mobile device and allow app notifications.
Monitor media sources and the district website during inclement weather.
Have a plan to pick up your children from school or the bus stop during an early dismissal.

We have three plans in place that we will use in case of a weather event or other emergency situation:

School Closed

If schools must be closed due to weather or any other such circumstance, we aim to have that decision made by 5:30 a.m., if not before. In the event of a school closing, we will inform families and staff through our automated communication system (ParentSquare email, text message, voice message, and app alert), our district website, our district social media pages (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn), and the local media.

When schools are closed, all schools and the District Office/Central Offices are closed for students and employees. All after-school activities or events are cancelled. Any emergency staff required to report in person will be contacted by their supervisor.

School Delayed Opening

We will implement either a one or two-hour delayed opening plan. In the event of a delayed opening, all students and employees will report either one or two hours after their regular times. In the event of a delayed opening, we will inform families and staff through our automated communication system (ParentSquare email, text message, voice message, and app alert), our district website, our district social media pages (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn), and the local media.

Should a delayed opening take place, schools will not serve breakfast. Schools will resume their normal schedule with lunch being served at regular times. Dismissals will also be during the regular times.

It is important to maintain communications during a delayed opening in the event it must be changed to a school closing.

School Early Dismissal

Decisions to dismiss early will typically provide a one-hour notice unless circumstances dictate otherwise. In the event that we must close schools early, we will inform families and staff through our automated communication system (ParentSquare email, text message, voice message, and app alert), our district website (www.santaclarausd.org), our district social media pages (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn), and the local media.

In the event of an early dismissal, the dismissal order will be as follows:

Once the dismissal time is announced, the school dismissals will be in increments of thirty (30) minutes. In the event of an early dismissal, all after-school events and activities are cancelled. Employees will dismiss as soon as all students exit the building.

For example, if the district calls for a two-hour delayed opening, an employee who normally reports to work at 7:30 a.m. will report at 9:30 a.m. A student who reports to the bus stop at 7:05 a.m. will report at 9:05 a.m.
High schools and alternative schools will dismiss at 11:30 a.m.
Middle schools (excluding Don Callejon K-8) will dismiss at 12:00 p.m.
Elementary schools (including Don Callejon K-8) will dismiss at 12:30 p.m.

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