Midday Progress Update: November 25, 2024

Dear Issaquah School District families and staff, 

We are reaching out with a midday update to ensure that you have the latest information in a timely manner. We are working today toward the goal of opening most of our schools tomorrow, Tuesday, November 25. Holly Street Early Learning Center will remain closed Tuesday due to storm damage.  

Special thanks to our Briarwood Elementary families, for your understanding and grace when we had to close the school this morning with very short notice due to an unanticipated problem with the HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system. We are also grateful to Issaquah High School families for your patience when we had to dismiss school early due to problems with the heating system.  

Before we can open a school after a power outage, we look for lights to operate, functional heating systems and operable kitchens. However, after many days without power, our buildings shut down, and there sometimes are unexpected impacts of being without power for several days. 

Here are other important updates: 

• We appreciate everyone’s patience today as we got schools up and running. We encountered a few challenges, such as inconsistent lighting and heating. In a few elementary locations we consolidated classes in response to the conditions. Our students and staff were very flexible and resilient, which we appreciate! Students across the district may have experienced:  

  • Flickering/no lights. 

  • Inconsistent temperatures across classrooms. 

  • Relocation of classroom and/or specialist classes. 

  • Consolidation of classes. 

  • Different breakfast and/or lunch menus. 
     

• Over the past few days, our staff members have made tremendous progress in partnership with cities, the county and Puget Sound Energy. We are very grateful for the diligent work that allowed us to do our part to prepare and open schools. 

• Our Transportation team and bus drivers have done an excellent job adjusting bus routes and getting students to school safely. Because of the internet outage across our schools and facilities, the Transportation office team relocated to the District Administration Building to use a hotspot to send messages to families. We understand that some families did not receive updates in a timely fashion, and we apologize and thank you for your patience. Updates about bus routes for Tuesday will be posted to this webpage later today: Snow Routes/Emergency Stops. 
   

• Middle School Reminders: 

• Middle school athletics and activities are canceled for today, Monday, November 25. 

• There is a change to the middle school schedule for Tuesday, November 26: The half day originally scheduled for Tuesday, November 26 is now a full day, and the half day for students so that teachers can complete grading will be December 6.   

We will send another districtwide message today by about 5 p.m. confirming the status of schools for tomorrow (Tuesday), November 26. Additionally, we will send the usual district bulletin with regular communication items. 

In partnership, 

 

Heather Tow-Yick 
Superintendent