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Inclement Weather Notifications

Inclement weather is bound to occur each school year, and knowing in advance how the District manages and communicates about situations from icy roads to snow storms is very helpful.

In the District’s Inclement Weather Bus Zones table, you will see a list of the schools for which alternate bus routes ("snow routes") have been identified for inclement weather events. If your child’s school is not listed, the buses in your area do not have snow route stops that are different from normal stops. If your child’s school does have identified snow route stops, walk or drive to the stop to familiarize them with it, but make sure they know to only go there if they are told their bus will run on a snow route on a particular day.

Next, please make sure we have your current contact information. If you already have login information for your ParentVUE account, you can go in and click the “My Account” tab to check the information we have on file. You can modify phone numbers and e-mail addresses yourself, but if there’s a change in your address please let your child’s office manager know so they can update your record. If you have students at multiple schools, you only need to have one school make the change as there is just one master parent record for each parent in our student information system. If you do not yet have your ParentVUE login information, please contact your child’s school office and they will be happy to help you.

Finally, please sign up for alerts and follow the District on social media. There are five main sources of information:

  • District Website. The District Website will always have the most current information about any inclement weather event posted in the alert bar on both the homepage and inclement weather page. Please check here for updates throughout the day. 
  • FlashAlert. FlashAlert is the system most local school districts and public agencies use to inform the media about weather-related delays, emergency situations, and breaking news. You can subscribe to Flash Alert by visiting www.flashalert.net, clicking on View Local News, then Portland/Vanc/Salem, then Washington Co. Schools, then Hillsboro Sch. Dist. Follow the steps to set up your account and download the free FlashAlert Messenger mobile app to receive push notifications when the District sends out weather or other urgent information.
  • Facebook and Twitter. The District’s Facebook and Twitter pages are immediately updated when a weather delay/closure or other emergency message is sent out via FlashAlert. We will also use these sites to post additional information as needed.
  • Remind App - is a district, school, and classroom communication tool that makes it easy to stay involved with your child's learning. Remind is free to use, and you'll be able to get and send messages on any device—even a simple text message from your phone. Here is a video demo to see how Remind works: English video, Spanish video. 
  • District Mobile App. The District’s mobile app is a one-stop source of information about the District in general, but is particularly useful in the event of an emergency because of its ability to send push notifications. At this time, push notifications are only sent through the app for weather delays/closures or other emergency information, they are not sent when buses are merely on snow routes. Make sure you have push notifications enabled within the app, and if it's been a while since you downloaded the app, consider deleting and reinstalling it to make sure you have the most current version.

Inclement Weather Decision-Making

Making decisions about how to respond to an actual or predicted weather event is very difficult. Of course, we want to have students in school whenever possible; however, we also want to keep students and staff safe.

Our district is very large, spanning 204 square miles. Each day, we transport more than 10,000 students (roughly 55 percent of our 18,500 student population) on 124 routes with 784 bus runs.  Within that area are elevations ranging from 140 feet to 1,500 feet. That means there can be several different climate zones and weather conditions within the District.

We subscribe to a weather monitoring service that provides detailed forecasts and recommendations for its members. We also belong to a regional group of emergency managers and public information officers that shares information about weather situations. Any time the weather forecast calls for snow, ice, or freezing rain below 1,500 feet, our Transportation personnel begin driving the roads around 3 a.m. to assess conditions and report back by 4:30 a.m. with their recommendations. District staff then analyze all available information—from the actual conditions on the roads and observable weather at the time, to the forecast, predictions, and degree of confidence for weather changes over the course of the school day—and make decisions about how to proceed.

For weather-related events, schools are either all open or all closed. Usually, school buildings themselves and District offices remain open; however, there are times when severe weather warrants the closure of the entire District. In addition, it is typically the case that when school has been canceled for the day, all afternoon and evening activities will be canceled as well. 

Getting the Information

There are several ways to find out about snow routes (SR), school delays (D) and school/district closures (C):

  • District Website (SR, D, C)
  • Remind (D, C)
  • FlashAlert (SR, D, C)
  • Facebook (SR, D, C)
  • Twitter (SR, D, C)
  • Instagram (SR, D, C)
  • News station broadcasts and website (SR, D, C)
  • District app (D, C)
  • Mass email (D, C)
  • Automated phone call (D, C)

Keep in mind that sources relying on volume transfers of information—websites, news broadcasts, texts, emails—can have bottlenecks and crashes. That’s why it is important to have at least one other source for the information, preferably the District app, text message/Remind, FlashAlert Messenger app, Facebook and/or Twitter.

If you have questions about the District’s communication during weather events and emergencies, please contact Communications Officer Beth Graser (graserbe@hsd.k12.or.us or 503-844-1772).

Inclement Weather Bus Routes

Zone School Area AM Route PM Route
1 Farmington View AM Route PM Route
1 & 2 & 3 Hilhi/South Meadows AM Route PM Route
2 & 3 Groner AM Route PM Route
8 Liberty/Poynter AM Route PM Route
8 West Union AM Route PM Route
9 Atfalati Ridge AM Route PM Route
9 & 10 Glencoe/Evergreen AM Route PM Route
10 North Plains AM Route PM Route

Inclement Weather Route Information

If inclement weather should occur, the District will determine which “Inclement Weather Zones” will be activated to accommodate the existing weather condition. These zones can be used for snow, ice, wind, flooding, etc. Inclement Weather Zone Map

If you live in the higher elevations of the District, you may be required to bring your student(s) down to a “Snow Stop,” as listed on your student’s route.

If you live in the lower elevation on a snow route, your times are close to your regular stop times. Please check the updated times on the links above.

Explanation of Inclement Weather – Snow routes:

  1. If Inclement Weather zones are activated, snow routes will be activated for AM and PM, even if the weather improves for the afternoon routes. 
  2. If Inclement Weather zones are activated on Wednesdays, all routes are run on normal Academic Seminar pick up and drop off times.
  3. Activity routes will be run as scheduled, unless otherwise announced.

Explanation of 2-hour late start time:

  1. If announced on a Wednesday, all Academic Seminar schedules (AM and PM) will be cancelled.
  2. This means that buses will run on regular schedule +/- the change for weather. Example: normal pick-up time is 7:00, under the late start the pick-up time would be 9:00, even if it is Wednesday.
  3. Secondary school options class shuttles will not run if schools are on a two-hour late start schedule.
  4. If the Hillsboro School District is on a 2 hour late start scheduled and/or bus are running on snow routes, bus service to programs outside the HSD boundaries will also be running on the 2 hour late start scheduled and/or snow routes.

If you have any questions, please call (503) 844-1123.

Para los padres de:

Información de las Rutas en Caso de Inclemencias del Tiempo

Si se presenta inclemencias del estado del tiempo, el Distrito determinará cuales “Zonas de Inclemencias del Tiempo” serán activadas para acomodar las condiciones climáticas existentes. Estas zonas se usan en caso de nevadas, heladas, viento, inundaciones, etc. Zona de Inclemencias del Tiempo

Si vive en las elevaciones más altas del Distrito, será necesario que traiga a su estudiante(s) a una zona de “Snow Stop” (paradero en caso de nieve) como está listado en la ruta de su estudiante.

Si vive en una elevación baja en las rutas de nieve, los horarios de los autobuses escolares serán similares a los horarios de parada habituales. Por favor, consulte los horarios actualizados en los enlaces de arriba.

Explicación de las Inclemencias del Tiempo – Rutas en Caso de Nieve:

  1. Si se activan las Zonas de Inclemencias del Tiempo, las rutas en caso de nieve serán activadas para la mañana AM y la tarde PM, aunque el estado del tiempo se haya mejorado para las rutas de la tarde.
  2. Si un miércoles se activan las Zonas de Inclemencias del Tiempo, todas las rutas seguirán el horario normal del Seminario Académico para recoger y entregar a los estudiantes. 
  3. Las rutas de actividades funcionarán según lo programado, a menos que se anuncie lo contrario.

Explicación del inicio de clases 2 horas tarde:

  1. Si se anuncia un miércoles, todos los horarios (AM y PM) del Seminario Académico serán cancelados.
  2. Esto significa que los autobuses funcionarán en horario regular, de acuerdo con el cambio del clima.  Por ejemplo: El horario normal para recoger a los estudiantes es a las 7:00, pero con el inicio tarde, sería a las 9:00, aún los miércoles.
  3. Lanzaderas Secundaria clase opciones escolares no se ejecutarán si las escuelas están en un comienzo tardío 2 hora programada.
  4. Si el Distrito Escolar de Hillsboro se encuentra en un comienzo tardío 2 hora programada y / o autobús se están ejecutando en las rutas de nieve, servicio de autobús a los programas fuera de los límites HSD también se ejecuta en el inicio tardío 2 hora programada y / o rutas de nieve.

Si tiene preguntas por favor llame al (503) 844-1123.