Quick Take
All Pajaro Valley Unified School District schools are set to be closed Tuesday, impacting more than 18,000 students. Several other area schools closed Monday and were weighing plans for Tuesday. On Monday afternoon, Mountain Elementary Superintendent Megan Tresham said she had yet to make a decision about whether to close Tuesday. Bonny Doon Superintendent Mike Heffner and Happy Valley Superintendent Michelle Stewart said their schools planned to be open Tuesday.
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More K-12 Santa Cruz County public schools announced closures for Tuesday as weather conditions continued to change rapidly.
“As of now, the majority of schools are currently closed or remote for the day,” County Office of Education spokesperson Nick Ibarra said Monday afternoon. “Remote arrangements may vary by school.”
All Pajaro Valley Unified School District schools closed Monday and Tuesday, affecting more than 18,000 students.
“With expanded and ongoing mandatory evacuations and the potential for additional flash flood warnings, all PVUSD schools will be closed tomorrow, Tuesday, January 10,” PVUSD Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez wrote in a letter to families. “On Tuesday afternoon, following site assessments, we will determine which schools will remain closed.”
The San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District joined other districts in canceling class Tuesday.
“Based on the current mudslides and the projected storm coming in overnight, including the possible closure of the Felton intersection; the District feels it is in the best interest of our families and staff to take a Storm Day for Tuesday, January 10, 2023,” reads a Monday evening statement. The district planned to have students return to school on Wednesday.
Three of the county’s single-school districts closed Monday due to the storm: Bonny Doon, Mountain and Happy Valley, according to Ibarra.
On Monday at 2:15 p.m., Mountain Elementary Superintendent Megan Tresham said she had yet to make a decision about whether or not to close Tuesday. Bonny Doon Superintendent Mike Heffner and Happy Valley Superintendent Michelle Stewart said their schools planned to be open Tuesday.
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The fourth single-school district, Pacific Elementary in Davenport, was open on Monday and planned to be open Tuesday but that could change depending on the conditions, according to Superintendent Eric Gross.
Scotts Valley Unified School District schools had class Monday and planned to be open for the week.
Several districts still weren’t scheduled to return from their holiday breaks until Tuesday and Wednesday.
In an email to families Sunday evening, Soquel Union Elementary School District Superintendent Scott Turnbull said out of an abundance of caution, the district would close Main Street Elementary and Soquel Elementary schools on Tuesday — the first scheduled day back to school for the district.
“The closures are based on two factors. First, we want to give as much lead time as possible because we understand how challenging child care and other logistics can be for families,” he wrote. “Secondly, both Main Street and Soquel [Elementary] are in Evacuation Warning zones on the website Zonehaven, which we are using to monitor potential flood zones.”
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He added that Santa Cruz Gardens Elementary and New Brighton Middle schools will have regularly scheduled in-person instruction Tuesday because those schools are not in evacuation zones.
Live Oak Unified School District Superintendent Daisy Morales said because the schools are outside of any flood zones, there were no plans to cancel the first day back to school Tuesday.
Santa Cruz City Schools students are scheduled to return for their first day back to school on Wednesday. Spokesperson Sam Rolens said the district had no plans to cancel or change instruction.
The storms have also affected private schools and charter schools, causing several closures.
Charter schools that closed include Delta, Linscott, Watsonville Prep, Ceiba and Pacific Collegiate School, according to Ibarra.
As for private schools, several announced Monday closures: Monte Vista Christian [holding remote learning), Mount Madonna, Twin Lakes Christian School, Orchard School, Santa Cruz Waldorf, Santa Cruz Montessori, OASIS, Spring Hill School, Tara Redwood School, Salesian Elementary and Junior High, Gateway School [holding planned COVID testing day), Moreland Notre Dame (canceled Monday’s teacher work day).
Quick Take
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Ibarra said schools have been working to keep families informed with the constantly changing updates.
“These are massive impacts,” said Ibarra. “It’s been complicated.”
UC Santa Cruz moved classes to emergency remote or online instruction Monday and announced that Tuesday would also be remote due to the storm’s impacts.
“All classes on Tuesday, January 10, will be delivered using online or emergency remote instruction, and we continue to encourage our campus community to limit nonessential travel,” Chancellor Cynthia Larive wrote in a message to campus. “We are monitoring the weather situation closely and will update the campus by 3 p.m. Tuesday about whether limited emergency remote instruction will continue into Wednesday.”
