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Frederick County Public Schools issues apology after opening schools on time this morningFeb 01, 2013 (The Frederick News-Post - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Frederick County Public Schools issued the following news release this afternoon regarding their decision to not delay schools this morning: FCPS would like to acknowledge all of the messages of concern we have received this morning about our decision not to delay the opening of schools. We faced a difficult decision this morning about whether to open schools on time. Indeed, we've faced several difficult weather-related decisions over the last couple of weeks. In this case, we acknowledge a delay would have been a better course of action. When our staff assessed transportation early, they found the roadways to be clear. At 5 a.m., no other counties immediately surrounding us were reporting delays. There was no information available at that time from county sources or weather services that would suggest a delay was warranted. Then, due to a late and rapidly moving weather system, a quick flurry of snow came. As road conditions changed, our professionally trained drivers exercised great caution to get students safely to school. Nevertheless, we recognize that many of our families and employees faced difficulty, concern, and inconvenience because of the decision to open schools on time -- and we apologize. We are also aware that at least one media outlet incorrectly reported that FCPS had enacted a 2-hour delay. Although we contacted the media to correct that error as soon as we discovered it, communicating the correction with the wider FCPS-community would have helped clarify any confusion the error may have caused. We will do so in the future. Our goal is always to be timely and proactive in our communication -- again, we will learn from this morning's events. We appreciate the community's feedback. It helps FCPS to learn from its mistakes and to improve our operations moving forward. ___ (c)2013 The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.) Visit The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.) at www.fredericknewspost.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |