While other schools are closed due to flooding, Hortonville High School students are leaving class early to help out.
Hortonville High School announced it would close at 1:15 p.m. April 17 so students could assist communities affected by recent flooding in northern Outagamie and Waupaca counties and so Hortonville High School can be used as a Red Cross shelter. Usually, school ends at 3:35 p.m.
Hortonville district administrator Todd Timm told the Appleton Post-Crescent that students would help with sandbagging and assisting the Red Cross. Timm said they plan to set up cots in the high school fieldhouse so it can be used as an emergency shelter if necessary, with access to food, water, showers and bathrooms.
The school had stepped into a similar role 13 years ago when the area was affected by a tornado, Timm said, adding, “We want to help if we can.” The school is fine on instructional hours, and will not have to make up the time, he said.
Schools in New London and Shiocton have suspended in-person learning for April 16 and 17 due to flooding. While New London is going to digital learning for those days, Shiocton called school off entirely, according to an April 15 social media post from district administrator Garrett Zimmerman.
“The building is inaccessible, the river has not crested yet, roads are impassable, and there is potential for more rain to come. I want to give you as much time as possible to plan for the rest of the week in this unprecedented situation,” the post said.
“While we have met our number of inclement weather days, I do not feel right calling for Digital Learning Days while our community goes through this flooding,” he wrote in the post. “I’d rather you focus on your loved ones and homes than an assignment. We will figure out how to address our days and hours after we come back together.”
Rebecca Loroff is an education reporter for the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. She welcomes story tips and feedback. Contact her at rloroff@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Hortonville High School closes early Friday to help flooding towns
Reporting by Rebecca Loroff, Appleton Post-Crescent / Appleton Post-Crescent
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
