LOCS Superintendent Marion Ginopolis will regularly share thoughts and updates about district-related topics in The Review.

Last week’s snowy weather caused school to be canceled in many Oakland County school districts. Much to the delight of children in Lake Orion Community Schools, that included our district.

On the eve before a potential snow day, students employ all kinds of tricks they think will ensure that there’s a snow day.

• Put a spoon under your pillow…

• Wear your pajamas inside out and backwards…

• Drop one ice cube in the toilet for every inch of snow you want…

• Shake a snow globe every time you walk past one…

• Eat ice cream the night before…

Then they start sending me tweets imploring me to cancel school.

“these roads are so bad you can’t even see the lines and I was sliding everywhere. We’ve used three snow days and you can’t use them in the next year so might as well use them now. Please give us a snow day. thank you, ma’am.”

Some even resort to bribery!

“Hey Mrs. Ginopolis, My mom does massage therapy. If you call it tomorrow, I’ll hook you up for free, no cap. Your back must get tense from holding up all of Lake Orion. DM me if interested”

I hate snow days – I don’t like having to get up at 4 a.m. to monitor the roads with our transportation and building and grounds staff. I don’t like being glued to the TV to hear what the weatherman is predicting.

I don’t like the social media criticism from those who think we should not have had a snow day and that our kids are a “bunch of wimps because when I was in school, I walked two miles through the snow…”

Most of all, I don’t like kids missing school.

Nevertheless, I have to consider the safety of students and staff and that is always the determining factor when a snow day is called.

At Webber Elementary School, Principal Jennifer Goethals came up with a clever way to make the day off more productive for her students by challenging them to find some time to do something kind for someone. And many students spent the day doing just that!

This is Michigan. We know the weather will change and we know we will have to adjust. Hopefully, winter waves goodbye soon and we can all enjoy the excitement of a beautiful spring.

In the meantime, students, keep making me laugh!