Schools planned to give the statewide writing test on Tuesday, but with concerns for the weather, Massachusetts Department of Education put the test on hold until March 25.
SPRINGFIELD – A late winter snowstorm with the potential to drop 6 or more inches was zeroing in on Western Massachusetts Monday, and forecasters were predicting it would arrive early Tuesday just in time to muck up the morning commute.
Hours before the first flake fell, the Massachusetts Department of Education announced it was putting off a portion of the statewide MCAS exams until next Monday.
Across the region, several communities enacted emergency parking bans including Greenfield, Northampton and Palmer.
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for much of Massachusetts in advance of the storm. The warning is scheduled to be in place until 11 a.m. Tuesday.
Snowfall totals will vary by location between 4 and 8 inches and result a time in “treacherous travel conditions.”
Nick Morganelli, meteorologist for CBS 3 Springfield, the media partner of The Republican and Masslive.com said accumulation at daybreak in Springfield should be around four inches while parts of the Pioneer Valley north of Interstate 91 could see six inches or more. Higher elevations may see more than that, with a potential for close to 10 inches.
Massachusetts schools were scheduled to administer the statewide writing test on Tuesday, but with concerns for the weather, the state Department of Education decided to postpone the test until March 25.
The test was to be held at all schools across Massachusetts for grades 4, 7, and 10. If the storm forced school cancellations in some communities, but not others, it would disrupt the entire test administration, according to a Department of Education statement.
"We realize that this change may be disruptive for some schools, but for security reasons it is critical that all schools administer the ELA Composition on the same day. Even schools that are unaffected by the storm must wait until Monday, March 25, to administer the test," according to the DOE statement.
Schools that remain open Tuesday are still able to hold the MCAS reading comprehension, however. Further details may be found at www.doe.mass.edu
The storm is also complicating things for the state Department of Transportation, which burned through its $45.5 million snow-and-ice-removal budget weeks ago.
As of March 11, the cost of road clearing operations on state roads was already $84 million.
“That amount is expected to rise as wintry weather continues and we receive deliveries of materials and call on our plow truck vendors...again!” DOT spokeswoman Sara Lavoie wrote in an emailed response to inquiries about the state snow and ice budget and spending trends.
MassDOT is authorized to spend $30 million in addition to its $45.5 million budget without seeking supplemental funding from the Legislature. And since spending has already exceeded that level, department officials say Beacon Hill is aware that a request for additional funding is likely this spring.
“Spring may be here, but we all know that does not necessarily mean the end to plowing and treating roadways. There is significant snow fall in the forecast for tonight into tomorrow,” Lavoie said.
According to MassDOT, state spending on snow and ice removal in recent years breaks down as follows: fiscal 2007, $41.7 million; fiscal 2008, $104 million; fiscal 2009, $127.5 million; fiscal 2010, $69.7 million; fiscal 2011, $106 million; and fiscal 2012, $35 million.