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Watauga County Schools Close on Tuesday; Day Will Be Made Up on Saturday

By Nathan Ham

With the weather forecast predicting a brief burst of snow today, Watauga County Schools chose to be proactive and go head and cancel school for the day. Schools are closed for students, teachers and all 10-month employees

Due to this cancellation, schools will now be in session this Saturday, February 2.  On Saturday schools and itinerant teachers will follow a Tuesday schedule and will also follow an early release schedule with K-8 schools dismissing at noon and Watauga High School dismissing at 1 p.m. Lunch will be served and the buses will run their usual routes. Please remember that the Afterschool Program will not operate on Saturday.

Watauga County Schools have now missed 12 days during the 2018-19 year.

The weather forecast also impacted classes at the Watauga Campus of Caldwell Community College & Technical Institute. The CCC&TI Campus will be closed for all classes on Tuesday. 

Schools in neighboring counties decided to close before any possible weather impacts could happen. Both Ashe and Avery County Schools are closed and it is an optional teacher workday. There is no word from either of those two counties on whether they will hold Saturday school this week. 

The National Weather Service released a Special Weather Statement at 9:38 a.m. stating that the snowfall is expected to arrive in Boone and surrounding areas late this morning. 

The most recent forecast update from Ray’s Weather Center expects 1-3 inches of snow for most of the area over a four to five-hour span. Flurries and snow showers will continue at higher elevations into the evening. 

Cold temperatures with highs in the 20s and lows in teens and single digits will hang around until Friday when a bit of a warming trend begins. Highs will be in the mid to upper 40s on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.