FREDONIA, N.Y. — With a Lake Effect Snow Warning in effect for Erie and Genesee counties, many school districts in the area chose to have a snow day on Thursday. However, two Western New York school districts closed Thursday for different reasons.
The Dunkirk City School District and the Fredonia Central School District both posted on Facebook early Thursday morning saying their schools will be closed for the day due to staffing shortages. The Dunkirk City School District did not go into further detail about the decision.
On the other hand, the Fredonia Central School District also posted a message from Superintendent Brad Zilliox, saying the district is experiencing a "significant faculty and staff shortage." Zilliox went on to say that the decision to cancel class on Thursday was based on positive COVID-19 cases in the district as well as winter weather expected in the area. In addition to classes being canceled, the school district also canceled all academic programs for the day.
According to Zilliox, the closure was in result to several absences late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. The school district says it expects to reopen on Friday.
You can read the full Facebook post from the Fredonia Central School District below:
FCSD will be CLOSED today, Thursday January 6th, due to faculty & staff shortages. Please see the message below from Superintendent Zilliox:
Dear Fredonia School Community,
Unfortunately, our school district will need to be closed on 𝗧𝗛𝗨𝗥𝗦𝗗𝗔𝗬, 𝗝𝗔𝗡𝗨𝗔𝗥𝗬 𝟲, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮. This decision is based on a significant faculty and staff shortage for the day related to both COVID-19 positive cases, as well as wintry weather for our commuters from the north. Our absences ramped up late last night into early this morning so prior notice was not possible. This includes all academic programs related to FCSD. This will be treated as a traditional snow day with no remote instruction.
We hope our Hillbilly family stays safe and warm and we expect to reopen on Friday. We will have more information for you later this afternoon. Thanks in advance for your understanding and support. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Respectfully,
Brad Zilliox
Superintendent