OXFORD, Conn — Oxford Public Schools announced earlier this week that students' first day would be delayed until Tuesday, Sept. 3, but Superintendent Dr. Robert Miller says that date is a best-case scenario due to the destruction from Sunday's storms.
School was supposed to start next Wednesday, Aug. 28, but damage to roads, bridges, and other infrastructure has forced the district to re-evaluate that plan.
"We have roads that are impassable. We have bridges that don't exist," Dr. Miller said Thursday. "We have roads that the sides of the road just don't, don't exist or you just go right off the cliff and then there are roads that are compromised that each day there's more sinkholes and potholes emerging. So just the the safe conditions of the roads are not permitting buses to transport on them right now. And we need to finish that assessment first before we can determine what roads you can travel with the buses."
His comments followed a statement made to families on Wednesday, where he argued that the decision was made with student safety in mind.
"To prioritize the safety of our students, we have made the difficult decision to delay the start of school," Miller said. " I understand that this is an inconvenience for many families, but the safety of our students must come first."
While the school district is aiming for Tuesday, Sept. 3 to be the first day of school, it heavily depends on if the roads have been restored and are safe to bus the kids to and from school. Dr. Miller says that it is possible they will decide to delay beyond that target date.
When asked why the district was choosing to delay, rather than turn to virtual learning, he said making that call is complicated and that going remote or hybrid is the "worst case scenario."
“We have to do some logistics and get clearance from the state and our attorneys ... in order to start that type of learning and we know that it's not best for students," he said. "We're trying to work with our before and after school organization that provides childcare at our elementary schools to see if they could provide additional coverage for those families that are in need, and we'll continue to provide whatever support we can to the families here.”
The town held an emergency management meeting Wednesday to assess current road conditions.
Parts of Route 34, Route 188 and Route 67, which are main roadways in Oxford, are closed due to flooding damage, according to the state Dept. of Transportation.
Town officials will meet again next Wednesday to determine if the roads are safe to use and if the buses would be cleared to drive on those roads. Even with cleared roads, Miller said it's possible that some bus routes will have to be changed.
Days that are missed at the beginning of this school year will be added to the June calendar, Miller said.
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