Navigating Safety Procedures During an Emergency Release Day

I, like many parents in the received the automated call this afternoon stating that "due to worsening weather conditions, children were being released to their parents or other persons listed on their emergency contact list."

Lake Washington School District did an outstanding job getting the word out to parents and everyone on each child's emergency contact list. So good a job, in fact, that when I arrived at my child's school, it was a mad house of parents and caregivers. It was not what I, nor probably any of the other parents, expected.

I talk about safety preparedness with parents all the time. I often remind parents to make sure that they talk with their children about what happens if "The Pick Up Plan" changes and make sure your child knows who exactly is on their emergency pick up list when situations like this do happen.

Credit of course should be given to the school admin staff, the PTA and parent volunteers who were working patiently and as fast as they could in a difficult situation.

What I might suggest for the school district is to help parents be better prepared for such an event as well by letting parents know what happens—exactly what happens—when school is canceled early. An outline of expectations might have helped parents understand that getting their children from school would not be like a "normal" day and that they may need to pack their patience. Posting this information on the LWSD school district website could have helped as well.

Each individual school might have benefited from having prepared packets sent to each child's classroom with emergency contacts and a sign-out sheet so that teachers could directly check out children from their classrooms into the hands of their caregivers, therefore avoiding the hour long-line that parents encountered.

I for one was just thankful that the kids are now home safe and sound. Making a call on whether or not to have a snow day is not always an easy decision. However, arming parents with what they need to know and what to expect when it does happen can sometimes make a tough situation less stressful.