Tampa Bay school district closures
(TAMPA, Fla)
Several Tampa Bay-area school districts have announced closures and other schedule changes due to the impacts of Hurricane Ian.
See the closures and schedule changes announced so far:
Citrus County
The Citrus County School District remained closed through Friday, Sept. 30. Four of the district’s schools were used as shelters for individuals affected by Hurricane Ian. After-school programs and extra-curricular activities were also canceled through Friday, Sept. 30.
School will resume on Monday, Oct. 3. Updates on closures can be found here.
Hardee County
The Hardee County School District will remain closed until electricity and water services have been restored, Wauchula Elementary announced Friday.
The district has been closed throughout the week and will give updates on when they plan to open on a day-by-day basis.
Check the Hardee County Schools website for updates.
Hernando County
The Hernando County School District will resume classes on Monday, Oct. 3. After-school activities, as well as child care services, will also resume Monday.
Any changes or closures will be announced on the Hernando Schools Facebook page.
Highlands County
Highlands County Schools said there would be no school on Monday. The School Board of Highlands County shared a statement on social media Friday saying that they are accessing several factors to determine when the schools can reopen safely.
According to an update provided by the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, on Saturday, district administrators and school principals met to assess readiness. Highlands County Schools said it hopes to reopen on Tuesday, Oct. 4.
Schools in the district are suffering from power outages, facility damage, transportation shortages and food access.
The district did announce that SAT testing at Sebring High School will be given as scheduled on Saturday, Oct.1, and Sunday, Oct. 2.
A decision on if schools will reopen on Oct. 4 will be made on Oct. 3 at noon, officials said.
Stay up to date with the district’s plans to reopen on its Facebook page.
Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County Schools will be open on Monday, Oct. 3, but classes will be released an hour early.
The schools were closed through Friday, Sept. 30, and will continue to be closed over the weekend to thoroughly clean the schools that were used as shelters.
Manatee County
The School District of Manatee County will be closed on Monday, Oct. 3. As of Friday morning, 15 Manatee District schools are without power. Maintenance and custodial crews are continuing to work to restore the schools to working conditions.
No announcements have been made for when school will resume. The district’s website will provide updates, along with notifications via calls, emails and social media posts.
Pasco County
All Pasco County schools and offices are set to reopen on Monday, Oct. 3. Power has been fully restored to the district’s schools and no schools suffered significant damage. The district announced on its website that this will be its final status update in the wake of Hurricane Ian.
Pinellas County
The Pinellas County School District announced Thursday that schools are being prepared to reopen on Monday, Oct. 3. The district closed schools and offices, and canceled meetings, sports and extracurricular activities through Friday, Sept. 30.
Stay up to date the status of the district’s schools here.
Polk County
Polk County Public Schools said they are scheduled to reopen schools on Tuesday, Oct 4., for all students. All available staff will return to work on Monday, Oct. 3.
“Parents who have the ability to transport their own children to and from school might consider doing so to help reduce the demand on our available drivers,” Superintendent Fred Heid said in a statement.
As of Thursday, Sept. 29, the district had more than half of its 131 schools without power. Heid says that power restoration is only a small portion of the problem, stating that food preparation, cleanup and staffing are still hurdles that need to be addressed before reopening is possible.
Sarasota County
Sarasota County Schools are closed on Monday, Oct. 3, and will remain closed until further notice, the district announced on social media Friday.
Many of the schools are without power and water in the district and some buildings have sustained damage. The district says that they will reopen schools once they deem them safe.
The district used several of its buildings as shelters, which are still in use as of Friday, Sept. 30.
