LOWER MERION—With last weekend’s winter storm and many schools choosing to either cancel classes or go virtual, Lower Merion officials recently outlined some of how those decisions are made.

As a result of the recent snowstorm, Lower Merion, like many schools throughout the region, either canceled school or opted to do virtual instruction. Lower Merion held virtual learning days on both Monday and Tuesday of last week.

The storm blanketed the area with around 10 inches of snow. After the snow fell, a layer of ice formed, making walking and driving in some areas more treacherous.

During last week’s school board meeting, Lower Merion Superintendent Frank Ranelli said they received many questions about what goes into the decision not to have school.

Ranelli said among the things they have to consider is the idea of getting nearly 10,000 students and staff into their buildings.

“A lot of people would e-mail in and say, ‘Well, I just drove to work, and it was fine,’” Ranelli said. “But think about getting 8,500 kids and over 1,000 staff members to the buildings in the morning. The roads were passable, but reports were telling me that they were very narrow in some spots.”

Another factor Ranelli cited was the limited area for students to wait for buses.

“I really would not want kids to wait on icy roads with cars driving by, so again we want to give it another day for spaces to be made,” Ranelli said.

According to Ranelli, all the schools in Montgomery, Delaware, Philadelphia, and many in Chester County were closed, and with many of the staff members coming from these areas, a lot of them would have had to stay home with their kids or have a hard time getting to work.

He also expressed concern for the student drivers and students who walk to school.

“If I could make a decision that could keep people safe in any way, I’m going to make that decision,” Ranelli said. “So, again, a lot goes into it.”

Ranelli also thanked the staff members who were caring for the grounds and buildings.

“I really want to take an opportunity to thank our operations team, all of our buildings and grounds, for all of their hard work,” Ranelli said.