Weather-Related School Closures

When the weather outside is frightful... deciding whether to close school is not an easy task. Snow may accumulate in one area and not in other areas. Lyle School District administration puts a great deal of effort and thought into determining whether to keep schools open, start late, or close schools due to inclement weather conditions. 

Although a lot of factors come into play, our number one consideration is student safety. We know, for example, that road conditions on High Prairie or Appleton can be much different than in the rest of the district. This is why parents always have the final say regarding whether to send students to school during inclement weather.

No News is Good News!

If you do not receive a call or email, and there is nothing announced on the local news, this means school is running on a regular schedule. 

If we do make changes to our regular schedule, here are a few messages you may see, and what to expect:

School Closure - If school is closed, all out-of-district transportation, meetings, field trips, after-school activities,and athletic games/practices will be canceled for the day unless otherwise announced. All evening meetings/functions scheduled to take place in district facilities will also be canceled. 

Two-Hour Delay - If there is a two-hour delayed start, there will be no Pre-Kindergarten/ECEAP.  K-12 students will be served a light breakfast such as a bowl of cereal, as well as lunch.  If weather conditions worsen after we have called a two-hour delay, school may ultimately be cancelled for the day. Keep checking for updates.

Snow Routes - Appleton and High Prairie Routes only - There are times when we will announce that buses are on snow routes.  In these circumstances, buses will meet parents and students at a more accessible location.  You can find snow routes here.

Early Release - In extreme conditions, students may be released early. Because we know parents/guardians may not able to return home from work to meet their children, our district will only dismiss students early from school in extreme situations. We also will take several measures to ensure our younger students aren’t left without supervision, including keeping them here at school until the parent can pick them up.

Parents should be prepared with a back-up plan in case this kind of situation arises. 

The best way to ensure you receive emergency notifications is to keep the school informed when your contact information changes. If your phone number or email has changed, please call 509-365-2211 so that we can update your information.

• Phone Alert - Parents will receive an automated phone call/text message to their designated primary phone number in the event of school closure, delay, or early dismissal. Calls are initiated before 6 a.m. when possible.

• Email - All parents/guardians with an email in Skyward will receive an email and/or a text message from the district via SchoolMessenger, our email notification system. 

• Facebook - Inclement weather notifications will be posted on the Lyle Schools Facebook page.

• The district website, www.lyleschools.org, will also have a notice in the slider at the top of the page.

• News Media - Radio stations such as KACI - 103.9 FM/1300 AM, KMSW 92.7 FM and KIHR 98.3 FM/1340 AM and Portland television stations KATU -  2, KGW - 8, KOIN - 6 and and KPTV - 12 will announce schedule changes by district name after 6 a.m. Schools will be operating on normal schedules if no announcement is made. Washington state schools and municipalities use www.flashalert.net to report the school's status to news media and emergency providers, but parents can check school schedule status on this page as well. Be aware, it is not user friendly for parents.  Look for Lyle School District under "View Local News" > Portland/Vancouver/Salem > Columbia Gorge Schools.