Whether the Weather Was Too Much?

Wintry weather on the rez. Photo by Colton Sierra '14. Copyright Red Cloud Indian School.

Whether the Weather Was Too Much?

By Colton Sierra '14

Monday, January 6th was the coldest day in recent times with the lowest temperature hitting at -16 degrees Fahrenheit. Most schools on the Pine Ridge reservation called off school. Instead, the Red Cloud and Our Lady of Lourdes schools received a two hour late start. There were a lot of student opinions wanting to call off school as well. There were a total of at least twenty Twitter and Facebook oppositions against the 2-hour late start decision. The opposing concerns were the freezing temperatures, the wind reaching a high of 14 mph, and if the kids were going to stay warm and out of danger's reach.

I surveyed a few of my fellow students about what they thought of the day and received answers against having school. "It was so cold!" said junior Wyatt Holiday. He was seen with his handy Red Cloud sweater on his back and his Ravens snapback on his head. "When I got on the bus yesterday, the heater wasn't working. In some of my morning classes, the heaters weren't working. I was freezing," said sophomore Henry Hawkins. I could relate with them on the cold, because I was in the same situation as them.

Even though school on Monday received a lot of criticism, there was one student I found who had no problem with school that day. “If your car started, and if the bus started, then it was alright,” said Josh Twiss ‘15. “If you’re cold, then you should have layered up. Even Ted Hamilton told you to bundle up in the school reach message.”

Since Ted Hamilton’s name was brought up, I paid him a visit about the cold on Monday. I have always wondered if he was under pressure when making the call for a two hour late start. “It’s not a hard decision at all. I think to myself, ‘What would our tough students do?’” said Ted Hamilton. “Did the adults who work at the hospital or the Red Cloud alumni college students get a day off that day? No.”

He continued, “You’re going to have a choice in college whether to go to class on a cold, freezing day like Monday or if you’re not going. But it won't effect Red Cloud students because they'll be used to it. This makes them stronger."

He told me, "If the wind did get up to 20 mph and higher, I would have called it because it would have been harmful to the little kids. I understand where they come from. I raised nine kids."

Ted Hamilton's 2-hour late start worked perfectly anyway. The freezing temperatures rose back to zero by time school started and to the mid-teens by the time it was noon. The wind calmed to six mph and it was overall a fair day in the unpredictable South Dakota weather.