JCPS monitoring winter storm forecast, talking with NWS about status of school Monday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- As thousands of students are expected to soon return to class following winter break, the threat of a winter storm is leaving many to question if snow days are in store.

As of now, Jefferson County Public Schools is scheduled to return to class Monday. On Friday, the district said it's monitoring the forecast and talking with the National Weather Service out of Louisville.

JCPS has a snow team that drives the roads whenever the weather gets rough to report back if they see any damage that would make it unsafe for kids to get to and from school. There are also teams to monitor each school building to ensure there is power, internet, and heat.

Kentucky Emergency Management will activate its State Emergency Operations Center as the storm approaches. Kentucky officials said Friday the centralized center in Frankfort can help organize and dispatch what's needed.

Temperatures could be 12-25 degrees colder than normal as the dreaded polar vortex stretches down from the high Arctic bringing chilly weather, officials said. The biggest drop below normal is likely to be centered over the Ohio Valley, but significant unusual cold will extend southward all the way to the Gulf Coast, said Danny Barandiaran, a meteorologist at the NWS' Climate Prediction Center.

JCPS said safety is most important, so the district will continue to check on the weather throughout the weekend to decide if there will be school Monday. According to Chief Communications Officer Carolyn Callahan, JCPS will try to make a decision Sunday night. If not, she said the district will make the call one way or the other by 5 Monday morning on whether to have school.

Callahan said because the district is coming back from a two-week break, if school is canceled Monday, it will be a traditional snow day with no virtual instruction.

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