Los Angeles Unified School District campuses reopened on Tuesday, Aug. 22, after being closed Monday following the deluge of rain from Tropical Storm Hilary.
“After a day of learning at home, we are back and ready to accelerate our students to their full potential,” Superintendent Alberto Carvalho posted on social media Tuesday morning as campuses welcomed back students.
Carvalho announced Sunday afternoon the decision to close campuses, saying the district was not in a position to keep schools open when it was unable to predict whether campuses might suffer storm damage overnight or if conditions would make it difficult or impossible for students and staff to reach campuses Monday morning.
“Our inability to survey buildings, our inability to determine access to schools makes it nearly impossible for us to open,” Carvalho said during a Sunday afternoon news conference.
He noted that some LAUSD students begin walking to school as early as 5:30 or 6 a.m., and some bus drivers report to work as early as 4:30 a.m., while adding that many district employees live long distances from their worksites.
On Monday morning, Carvalho again defended the decision, saying it was a choice “informed by scientific data and conditions as they are presented to us.”
He said crews assessed campuses Monday, finding about two dozen that had no phone or internet service, and one that experienced a minor mudslide. He said there were also access issues affecting campuses and district facilities in the Sun Valley area.
By late morning, the phone/internet service was restored at affected campuses, and other cleanup work was progressing, according to the district.
The vast majority of independent charter schools in the LAUSD area were also closed Monday, with a few exceptions.
The district Monday also opened 13 grab-and-go food distribution sites, providing students and families with three meals during the school closures.
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