Just a little over two months after getting her license, junior Sophia Leinwand thought the heavy morning snow might mean a day off, until her 15-minute drive to school ended abruptly with her car sliding on ice into a street sign. Moments later, another student driver skidded across the same patch of ice and collided with her car on the side of the road, leaving dents on both the front and back of her car. Neither student was harmed, but the accident left Leinwand wondering whether the snow-day calls truly take into account the condition of the roads.
On Dec. 6, JDS followed Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in not calling a snow day or two-hour delay, despite over an inch of snow falling early and icy roads building up throughout the morning. This decision came just three days after the county issued a two-hour delay in anticipation of severe winter weather, although only rain ended up falling on Tuesday, Dec. 3.
“It just surprised me,” Leinwand said. “I know not every storm becomes a snow day, but when the roads in my neighborhood were that icy, especially considering that we had a delay in the rain, I was really confused when I got on the road.”
For Leinwand, the accident was especially jarring as a newer driver. Teen drivers are already at higher risk on the road: according to the CDC, drivers ages 16-19 are nearly three times more likely to be involved in a crash than older drivers. Add early-morning ice, limited visibility and untreated neighborhood streets, and Leinwand said the drive quickly became overwhelming.
“We learn about all these situations in driver’s ed, but you never really think it’ll happen to you,” Leinwand said. “It definitely puts into perspective how careful you have to be, not just for yourself but for everyone on the road.”
JDS has always followed MCPS’ snow day policy on the first day of inclement weather, while they branch off and make their own decision on day two. For two-hour delays, however, JDS always follows the county, according to Dean of Students Roz Landy. Landy explained that while there have been talks about JDS branching off from the county, JDS ultimately determined it lacked the capacity to accurately assess road conditions across the many regions students travel from.
“You would have to have people who can assess the situation in Gaithersburg, in Virginia, in D.C. and in Montgomery County in order to make an informed decision,” Landy said. “Because we do not have the ability to do that, we follow Montgomery County, since the largest number of our students live there. It may not be a perfect system, but it is the best option.”
Junior Molly Rose Cloutier, who lives in Virginia and commutes to Rockville each day, encountered multiple accidents on her way to school that morning. Cloutier took the 470 highway to school and witnessed a 5 car pileup directly in front of her. Cloutier then exited the highway out of fear and parked her car in a parking lot on the side of the road while calling her parents.
“I hear this really loud bang in front of me, and I look to my left, and three cars have just crashed,” Cloutier said. “Another one runs into it, and no one can stop because the ice is causing them to slide. I watched it all happen, and I was thinking, ‘Thank God I wasn’t in there.’ I actually started praying in the car.”
Unlike JDS, MCPS does not need to consider conditions in surrounding counties or states; MCPS decisions apply only to students living within the county. MCPS has a multi-step process that starts as soon as there are warnings of severe winter weather.
At 3 a.m., staff across the county start checking road conditions. By 4:15 a.m., the Director of Transportation delivers a recommendation to the Chief Operating Officer, who passes their own recommendation to the Superintendent. The Superintendent then makes the final call by 5 a.m.
“In hindsight, Friday should have been a delay,” Landy said. “That said, when I left my house at 6:45 a.m., the weather was calm; shortly thereafter, it started to flurry, but by then, it was too late to postpone the school day because buses were already on the road. It was a very difficult decision, and Montgomery County did their best under the circumstances.”
