By Marcia Barnes
Staff Writer
The weekend snow that had been forecast a week earlier closed Clay County Schools on Monday, Feb. 2.
The decision to close school due to snow or ice is something taken seriously by Superintendent Melissa Godfrey and the team that is called on to make that decision.
Regarding a decision to close school, that decision usually comes from just driving the roads. Director of Transportation Jimmy Moore often starts driving the roads anywhere from 2 - 4 a.m. Godfrey said that Moore has been doing this for a long time, he knows where to go.
It takes a team to make that call. Godfrey and Moore collaborate, then Godfrey consults with Jeff Ledford at Emergency Management, the Department of Transportation, 911 and dispatch, the Clay County Office of the Sheriff and the North Carolina Highway Patrol.
“Also, the county has no control over how the roads are maintained, although I do want to say the Department of Transportation has done a great job. They are very collaborative with us,” Godfrey said during a board meeting in January 2025.
On the positive side of snow days, weather decisions do not impact funding. The North Carolina Legislature allows for five remote learning days for students and schools are required to go by instructional hours for students, not days.
Regarding weather decisions and to delay school or not to delay, this is what is factored in: road conditions, snow or ice; daylight and black ice; temperature, will a delay allow for an increase in temperature; and wind. All these things are considered regarding a two-hour delay to a school day.
The decision for a snow day — a no school day, and a delay or not to delay due to weather are not as clear cut as some might think. Following a snow day school closure in January 2025, Godfrey said they take every decision as it comes.
Generally, public schools in western North Carolina experience a relatively low number of snow days per school year. Monday was the first school closure due to weather in the 2025/2026 school year for Clay County Schools. Students did not return to school on Tuesday, Feb. 3, it was an optional teacher work day.