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Superintendent stands by call not to close Hopewell schools

Posted at 6:04 PM, Jan 18, 2013
and last updated 2013-01-18 18:04:03-05

HOPEWELL, Va. (WTVR) -- While most students enjoyed their snow day off on Friday, students in Hopewell Public Schools woke up to a two-hour delay.

Hopewell schools were one of the only school districts to be open in Central Virginia and Superintendent Dr. John Fahey says it was a tough decision to make.

"What we decided to do was to have a two-hour delay with the possibility of, if it was really bad, we were going to close school," Fahey said.

Some parents agree the right decision was made to open schools. But others said the call was risky.

"Well I think its dangerous, I mean, everybody else is closed except Hopewell High School," said concerned parent Aileen Encarnation.

However, unlike many rural counties, Hopewell is less than 12-square miles and most streets remained clear.

"If it was un-safe at all, I guarantee you, we would close schools. We will not take the safety of our kids lightly," Fahey said.