Pittsburgh schools taking timeout after Super Bowl

PITTSBURGH - Regardless of which team prevails in the Super Bowl, students in Pittsburgh's public schools might consider themselves winners.

The School District said yesterday that it would open two hours late Monday because people will be up late Sunday watching the Pittsburgh Steelers play the Arizona Cardinals in the 6:30 p.m. game.

Superintendent Mark Roosevelt is no fan of delaying or canceling school even in bad weather, but he said there was no reason to ignore the Super Bowl's effect on school operations. Asked whether he feared student and staff absences, he said he hoped the delay would help mitigate any problem.

The district, which also opened two hours late on the day after the Steelers won Super Bowl XL three years ago, called the decision a safety precaution. Bus companies will have extra time to get vehicles to bus stops, said Lisa Fischetti, chief of staff.

While two-hour weather delays are generally for students, Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers president John Tarka said Monday's delay would be for his union's employees, too.

The Super Bowl delay appears to be a Pittsburgh thing. The Phoenix Union, Glendale Union and Tempe Union School Districts in Arizona said they would keep their usual schedules, though a Glendale employee noted that the game starts at 4:30 p.m. in the Mountain Standard Time zone. Twelve other school districts in the Phoenix area also said they had no plans to delay.