UPDATED: County Schools Closed on Tuesday

Updated—All Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) will be closed on Tuesday and a "code blue" is in effect for employees because of "ongoing widespread power outages and transportation issues."

According to Bob Mosier, AACPS spokesman, 36 of the 120 schools in the county are still without power. However, Mosier said that parents should not assume that AACPS will wait to resume a normal schedule until every school has power.

Factors being considered (in addition to whether schools have power) include the ability of staff and bus drivers to get to work, safety of students who walk to school and transportation concerns such as road closures and intersections without working traffic signals.

Mosier said only 10 schools reported water issues related to the storm and the damage wasn't much worse than what might be expected during a "spring thunderstorm."

The school calendar has four days built in at the end of the school year for emergency closings. Mosier said that he's not sure how the calendar will be impacted if more emergency days are needed. He noted that some days may be waived, given that a "State of Emergency" was declared in the city of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County and the state of Maryland. Such a waiver was granted in 2010 after winter storms when students missed more days than the calendar allowed.

There are still issues related to updating the school system website, so further information will continue to be passed through local media outlets and additional phone messages.

(Original post) The Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) headquarters on Riva Road in Annapolis is still out of power and the website is not working either. AACPS has not decided whether schools will be open Tuesday.

AACPS spokesman Bob Mosier asked that Patch help get information out regarding pre-K and kindergarten students who were scheduled to attend school Monday.

"[A]s part of the staggered entrance schedule, [pre-K and kindergarten students] will have their staggered start day moved to the next day that schools are open," he wrote. "The remainder of the staggered entrance schedule will be shifted accordingly, allowing for each of our youngest students to take part in the staggered entrance schedule."

For example, students scheduled to go on Monday should instead go on Tuesday (provided school is open on Tuesday).

Mosier also noted that parents will receive additional notifications through automated phone messages.