Columbus City Schools will on Tuesday, August 28 and Wednesday, August initiate an early dismissal for all students due to expected “extreme heat conditions.”

A statement by the Columbus City Schools said that, “Interim Superintendent/CEO Dr. John Stanford initiated the Beat the Heat plan after temperatures nearing 90-degrees are expected to continue into”  Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon.

Below is additional information about this precautionary step and what it will mean for families:

• All high school and middle school students will be dismissed starting at Noon.
• Students in elementary, K-6, and K-8 schools will be dismissed starting at 1:00 pm.
• All students will be served lunch before they are dismissed.
• Afternoon buses will run approximately 2.5 hours earlier. Families need to make alternative plans to meet children at the bus stop early or arrange for early pick-up at the school.
• After-school sports and extra-curricular activities are cancelled for Tuesday afternoon.
• Latchkey will still be open and ready to welcome students at 1:00 p.m.
• Teachers and staff will remain at the buildings until the end of the regular day. Faculty and staff will be able to work in the limited cool/air-conditioned spaces. Teachers will also assist in supervising any students who cannot be transported home early.

According to the statement, “building custodians will report an hour earlier to open windows and turn on fans, so air is circulating even before staff and students arrive. To keep air moving in the halls and classrooms, the District has placed as many fans as possible in these buildings and deployed additional industrial-sized fans.”

Also students will receive bottles of water upon arrival to help them stay hydrated. Additional staff will be placed at these buildings to monitor conditions.

It added that, “for now, this precautionary dismissal is only for Tuesday, August 28. The Interim Superintendent and District leadership will continue to monitor building conditions and make decisions about any future early dismissal dates as early as possible, to give families as much time as possible to plan for schedule changes.”