Communication Policies

Sometimes inclement weather requires Paris Independent to delay or cancel our school day.

When the forecast calls for extreme weather overnight, crews from the district's transportation and maintenance department begin checking bus routes very early in the morning to see if the roads are safe for school buses. Meanwhile, the Superintendent checks in with local police departments and other school districts in the area. Based on all this information, a decision is made on whether or not to delay or cancel classes.

Once a decision has been made, it's shared with parents via email, phone call, SMS Message (text), and posted on the district's website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Local television and radio stations are also notified.

The announcement to delay or cancel school will be made either by 9:00 PM the night before a snow day/delay, OR before 5:30AM the morning of the snow day/delay.
(Ex. The announcement to call off or delay school will never be made at midnight. If the decision has not been made by 9:00 PM, the announcement will be made the next morning before 5:30AM.)

The safety of our students and staff is a top priority at Paris Independent Schools. All communication protocols that are used during emergency situations are indicated in our District Crisis Response Plan.

Our Crisis Response Plan spells out two different types of Lockdown procedures. One is a “Lockdown Continue Teaching” and the other is a “Lockdown Shelter In Place”

“Lockdown Shelter In Place” means there is a perceived or actual imminent threat to our students and staff.  All students and staff must go to a designated area behind locked doors, turn off the lights and remain quiet. In this instance, an email, phone call, SMS Message (text), and social media post would be made to parents as soon as possible with regular updates as needed to keep parents informed as we address the situation. The email is sent using the "Emergency" email list through Infinite Campus and School Messenger.

This is a situation that we train for but hope that we never need to actually initiate. Please keep in mind that in order to ensure the safety of our students and staff, there may be a slight delay in communication in emergencies. Delays in communication will only occur with the 100% safety of our students and staff safety in mind.

“Lockdown Continue Teaching” or a "soft lockdown" means that there is no perceived or actual imminent threat to our students and staff.  During this protocol, all students and staff should be inside the building, and the hallways should be cleared and doors should be locked.  Teaching can continue as it normally would inside the classrooms.  This procedure can be utilized for a number of reasons when there is no danger to our students or staff inside the building. 

For instance:

In the instance of a Lockdown Continue Teaching where there are no law enforcement officers involved, only an email is made to parents to keep parents informed. The email is sent using the "General" email list through Infinite Campus and School Messenger. Because there is no perceived or actual imminent threat to our students and staff, no phone call shall be made in this instance.

Non-Emergency Important Communication may include changes in Bus Routes, School Calendars, School Day Schedules, Safety Procedures, or other important procedures that pertain to a large portion of the student body.

We will share this information via phone call if it is vital for families to know as soon as possible, usually within 24 hours.

We will also occasionally share this information on our social media pages, however, due to social media site algorithms, social media is not a reliable way to communicate information to families, so we do not rely on it for important communication.