KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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Monday's snowfall created challenging conditions across the area, leading to early dismissals at schools and transportation delays in Wyandotte County school districts.
Some parents questioned whether schools should have been open Monday.
All four Wyandotte County districts — Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools, Turner, Bonner Springs-Edwardsville and Piper — kept schools in session Monday despite snowy conditions that left some buses stuck and cars moving slowly with hazard lights flashing.
I reached out to all four school districts about the decision to hold classes. Three districts did not provide a comment to KSHB 41 about why they chose to have school.
"If I'm not willing to take myself out, I'm not going to send him," said Angelina Mendez, a KCK grandparent who kept her 11-year-old grandson home from school.
Mendez shared video showing multiple cars stuck on streets and a bus that had become stranded.
The conditions prompted her to make the decision to keep her grandson home for safety reasons.
“I think it should have been canceled this morning,” Mendez said. “I think it’s crazy they kept it open.”
RELATED | Anchor Caitlin Knute worked the phones all afternoon with school district leaders across Kansas City to learn more about their decision. You can watch her report in the video player below.
KCKPS, the largest school district in the county with about 22,000 students, initially sent messages to parents saying buses were running behind schedule.
The district later announced it would release students an hour early.
“I think it was crazy,” Mendez said. “Once the buses started getting stuck, I think they should have been like, ‘Just turn around and come back.’"
All other districts in the county implemented their own versions of early or staggered releases.
"This was all last minute with the school with voicemails, texts, emails," said Olivia Jones, a KCK parent who had to leave work early to pick up her 10th-grade daughter, Dominic Minick, from Schlagle High School.
The communication methods used by KCKPS include text messages, emails and social media updates to reach parents about schedule changes and safety information.
Students had mixed reactions to the early dismissal.
Minick, a 10th grade student at Schlagle High School, said she announced the early release to her speech class and they started cheering.
"I didn't want to go to school today, so this is nice," she said.
Some parents expressed concerns about both the timing of notifications and the decision to hold classes at all given the road conditions.
"I get that they have to make all that up and everything, but still, I'd rather the kids be safe," Mendez said.
Parents are already asking whether school will be canceled or postponed for Tuesday.
A spokesperson from the Bonner Springs-Edwardsville district said decisions about Tuesday involve consultation between area superintendents and maintenance crews, with safety being their top priority.
You can see an updated list of school delays and closings here.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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