Snow and Ice Management Checklist for School Administrators

Snow and ice management is an important responsibility for school administrators. After all, slippery or obstructed parking areas and walkways can result in schedule delays and/or injury to students, faculty, and/or other visitors. To ensure that your school is prepared to tackle snow and ice management problems before the start of the winter season, here is a checklist/list of questions you may find helpful.

• Define what services your property will need (with help from your snow and ice management service provider if necessary.)

o What portion of the snow and ice management services will be contracted to an outside service provider?

o Is sidewalk shoveling needed or is there sufficient internal staff?

o Does the entire parking lot need to be cleared of snow, or can a portion of the parking lot be covered until snow melts?

o Is deicing needed when the plowing is completed?

o Will spot treatment for ice be needed during the freeze thaw period after the storm?

o In heavy snowfall, will piles need to be managed on site with skid-steer or front-end loaders?

o When a blizzard occurs, will snow need to be hauled off site?

• Identify how your property is used, the hours of operation, and schedule for when service should be completed.

o Allow enough lead time to have service completed before students, faculty, and/or other visitors need access your school grounds.

o Identify if there are unusual hours of operation.

o • Develop a site map of your property.

o Delineate property boundaries.

o Mark where snow piles should be placed.

o Mark where snow piles should not be placed (on walkways, in front of trash dumpsters, fire hydrants, storm drains, handicap walkway ramps.)

• Choose the right service provider.

o Get references that are in close proximity to your property.

o Look for association membership.

o Look for professional certification (Certified Snow Professional or CSP.)

• Provide your service provider with the hours of operation and marked site map.

• Meet with your service provider on the property and discuss the snow and ice management plan.

o Review what equipment will be used and if it is dedicated to your property or if it will be shared with another customer of the service provider.

o Exchange contact information and discuss how communication will be achieved, and notification of services be given, during winter storm events.

o Discuss what will be the contingency plan for heavy snow or challenging ice storms.

Rodney Anderson is founder and CEO of Snow Movers, a provider of snow and ice management services in the Washington, D.C./Baltimore region. He can be reached at 410/421-9557 or [email protected].

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