Kansas City district cancels school ahead of ‘unpredictable winter weather’
Kansas City Public Schools will have a snow day on Wednesday, after the National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for the metro. It was one of the first districts in the region to do so.
District officials called it an “old-fashioned snow day,” because classes will be canceled and students will not be required to log in for virtual classes.
“We don’t take the decision to cancel school lightly. We know that whenever we cancel school, your plans change, too. Thanks for working in partnership with us as we navigate unpredictable winter weather,” officials said in a message to families.
The winter storm warning is in effect from 9 p.m. Tuesday to 6 p.m. Thursday for the Kansas City area as well as portions of east-central and northeast Kansas and most of Missouri. The metro region could receive as much as a foot of snow.
Last year, some districts considered moving away from traditional snow days after they mastered pivoting to virtual classes during COVID-19 school closures. But this year, both Missouri and Kansas have placed new restrictions on remote learning.
In Missouri, if a class or building must temporarily close, districts can submit a plan to the state, which could allow them up to 36 hours of alternative instruction, such as remote learning. Kansas allows 40 hours of remote learning per student.
Some area districts have already been using a few days off, built into the school calendar, for COVID-19 shutdowns. If districts exceed the number of days they are allowed to cancel school, it is possible some would need to extend the school year or find other ways to make up the lost hours.
Here’s an updated list of school closings:
This story was originally published February 1, 2022 at 5:10 PM.
