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Volume 104 • Number 25 • Thursday, February 6, 2014 • PO Box 188 • 111 E. Jenkins • Maryville, MO
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Snow days require flexibility for schools Teachers minimize disruptions with ‘Net By STEVE HARTMAN Staff writer
TONY BROWN/DAILY FORUM
Ready when you need them
Maryville R-II school buses are shown parked in a row plugged into electric heaters designed to protect their diesel engines from exposure to extreme cold. Local schools were not in session Wednesday for the second day in a row following this week’s snowstorm, which was accompanied by a front that sent wind chills plunging well below zero.
Students, and even teachers, enjoy the unexpected day off when winter weather in north Missouri makes travel too difficult and a snow day occurs. However, snow days still create problems for school districts that have to be addressed in order for carefully planned instruction to continue with minimal interruption. “Our first priority in calling off school is always student safety,” Maryville R-II School District Supt. Larry Linthacum said. “We always base that decision with student safety in mind.” Every public school in Missouri has a mandatory number of student seat-time hours that must be met in order to receive state funding. In a perfect world, the school calendar would not be influenced by weather interrup-
tions. But, as Linthacum noted, this is northern Missouri, and weather will always play a role. “We do live in northwest Missouri,” Linthacum said, “and winter weather is always going to be a factor. You do your best to plan and prepare for it. We try to plan accordingly, and focus on the positive.” The superintendent said snow days can be a challenge for teachers, due to carefully planned curriculum, but adds that his instructors are flexible enough to adjust as necessary. “Our teachers do a great job of picking up where they left off and communicating with students,” Linthacum said. “Several of our teachers use their Internet web pages and Twitter accounts to communicate with students about any change in class plans that snow days may have caused. “For instance, if a specific class See SNOW, Page 6
City digs out after storm
Not many mishaps reported By TONY BROWN News Editor
News flash. The weather in Nodaway County is really awful this week. It’s bitterly cold, snowy and windy, and just walking down the sidewalk — let alone driving down the street — can be hazardous to your health. What’s more, it looks like the extreme cold is going to hang around several more days at least. The bright spot? Well, things could be worse. According to PeopleService staffers at the Maryville water treatment plant, who keep track of such things, Maryville got only 5 inches of snow Tuesday, though with all the drifting it was hard to tell. Other parts of the county reported as much as 7 inches, and drifts several feet deep were not uncommon. Despite the heavy snowfall, things have been fairly quiet on streets and highways, with Maryville Public Safety reporting only a couple of noninjury accidents Tuesday, and sheriff’s deputies responding to a single slide-off out in the county. Sheriff Darren White said Jackson Township volunteer firefighters responded to a machine shed fire Tuesday evening in the eastern part of the county, but that the blaze was brought under control, and there were no injuries. “I think a lot of people got the mes-
KEVIN BIRDSELL/DAILY FORUM
Facebook turns 10
Facebook keeps people in contact with friends and family across the country. Despite how far away your loved ones live, they are only one click away on Facebook.
Social media connects world By KEVIN BIRDSELL Staff writer
What started a decade ago this week as a way for college students to keep in touch with each other has ballooned into a multi-billion-dollar “social media” revolution. Facebook was born in a college dorm room on the campus of Harvard University on Feb. 4, 2004. Mark Zuckerberg launched the site so that his fellow students could stay connected,
share information, send messages and make new friends. At the time of its launch, the online social media sector was dominated by Friendster and MySpace. But it didn’t’ take long for Facebook to gain an astounding amount of popularity. In just 10 short months, the platform reached a million users. Sharing photos is one thing that people love about the site now, but it
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Today High: 10° Low: -6°