Winter Weather Protocols - Apple Valley High School

How Weather-Related Decisions Are Made

The safety of students and staff is always our top priority. District 196 considers road conditions, visibility, snow depth, wind chill, and the forecast when deciding whether to cancel or delay school.

E- Learning Days: Minnesota law allows school districts to have up to five E-Learning Days per school year to allow students to continue their learning from home when weather conditions make it unsafe to attend school in person.

Days 1–2: The first two inclement weather days each year will be treated as traditional snow days (no school).
Days 3–7: Beginning with the third day, students and staff will shift to an E-Learning Day from home.

To ensure readiness, students and staff should take their learning devices home each day.

How We Communicate Schedule Changes

A pop-up alert on the District 196 website/all school websites
Phone call, text message, and email to families and staff
Posts on Facebook and Instagram (@District196)
Updates on the District Information Line: 651-423-7700
Notifications to local television stations (listed as Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public Schools)
If school remains open as scheduled, no communication is sent.

If you are a community member (not a parent or staff member), you can get weather updates by joining our School Cancellation Notification Group in ParentSquare (you will need to create a ParentSquare account). Parents and staff do not need to join this group — they will get these messages automatically.

Receive District 196 School Cancellation Notifications

Canceled Due to Snow

No regular classes for students and the following activities are canceled:

School-Age Care (SAC);
Connections Preschool;
Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE);
Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE);
Transition Plus;
Adult Basic Education (ABE);
Community Education daytime and after-school activities, and
Elementary and middle school after-school and evening activities.

A decision about high school after-school and evening activities, and Community Education evening activities, is made and communicated on websites by mid-afternoon that day.

Two-Hour Delay

School buses operate on a two-hour delayed schedule, meaning students will be picked up at their bus stop two hours later than their normal pickup time, and the following activities are canceled:

SAC (morning only);
ABE (morning only);
ECSE and ECFE (morning and afternoon);
Connections Preschool (morning and afternoon), and
Community Education activities (morning only).

After-school and evening activities are held as scheduled.

Canceled Due to Cold

Cold Weather Closures: School will be canceled if the 6 a.m. forecast calls for -25°F or colder or a wind chill of -35°F or colder. Cold-weather decisions are made by 6:30 p.m. the night before. During a cold-weather closure, SAC will be offered only at predetermined sites and only to families who are already enrolled.

Families may always choose to keep their child home if they feel travel conditions are unsafe.

E-Learning Days

When an E-Learning Day is called because of snow, school-aged care will be canceled.
If the E-Learning Day is due to cold weather, school-aged care will still be available for families.

Elementary School: On the morning of an E-Learning Day, families will receive information through ParentSquare (will be available after 9:30 a.m.) that includes a Choice Board of lessons for the day. There is no live or Zoom instruction.
Middle and High School: On the morning of an E-Learning Day, students should check Seesaw for instructions on assignments (will be available after 9:30 a.m.) and are expected to be engaged with their required learning tasks. There is no live or Zoom instruction. Activities are designed for students to complete independently at home.
Students will be considered in attendance for an E-Learning Day unless a parent or guardian verifies an absence.
Teachers will be available during regular school hours to respond to student/family questions sent by email and to phone calls left on their work voicemail.
If a staff member is not available during an E-Learning Day due to illness or a personal day, the teacher will notify students and families of their absence.

Severe Weather Preparation

The safety of our students and staff is our top priority. Our schools participate in severe weather drills and prepare for a range of possible scenarios, including disruptions to outdoor activities due to thunder and lightning, severe thunderstorms that may delay dismissal or transportation, and tornado warnings that require everyone to take shelter.

Dakota County emergency sirens (indicated by a five-minute steady tone) and weather alert radios may alert school leaders of a severe weather situation. A school administrator or designee would direct everyone to pre-designated school SHELTER areas if there is a tornado warning or high winds (> 70 mph).
Once students are assembled in a safe area, they are taught to assume a protective posture (crouched down on elbows and knees with hands over the back of the head) facing an interior wall (if possible) when danger is imminent.
If a tornado warning is in effect or the Dakota County Sirens have been activated at the end of the school day, students remain in shelter until it is safe to release. Dismissal and transportation routes may be delayed.
The district will communicate with families and staff through a phone call, text, and email.