As communities across the nation attempt to dig out from a massive winter storm, and brace for hazardous conditions that will linger throughout the week, states’ and school districts’ approaches to delivering instruction in severe weather—if they do it at all—vary greatly.
Some school systems immediately announced a pivot into remote learning, while others simply closed school, with no organized plans for online instruction.
As a result of the COVID pandemic, many school districts put in place technology protocols to allow them to provide lessons online.
Yet some states and school systems also restricted remote learning, questioning its overall value and whether it worsens inequities for students who aren’t in stable home environments.
Over the past day, several states have been hit with snowfalls higher than 20 inches. One community in New Mexico reported 31 inches of snow. States and communities are also experiencing power outages, with stretches of the South, including Tennessee and Mississippi, feeling the most severe impact.
States and school districts have had different reactions to the winter storm. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced school buildings would be closed on Monday but that students would learn remotely.
The decision affected about 500,000 of the district’s 900,000 students. Many students in grades 6-12 were already scheduled to be out of school because of a professional learning day.
“I am grateful to our school communities for the work they’ve done over the last several days —from stress-testing technology to securing buildings and getting virtual classrooms ready,” New York City Schools Chancellor Kamar H. Samuels said in a statement. “This was a difficult decision made with the safety of every family in mind, and I thank you for your flexibility.”
In New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham declared a state of emergency, and the decisions on whether to close schools completely or engage in remote learning were left to individual districts, according to local reporting.
Debates about whether to call off schools entirely in the face of severe weather, or shift to online instruction, aren’t new. Advocates for snow day cancellations argue that remote learning creates unequal learning opportunities. Advocates for online instruction see it as a viable option to keep students engaged academically, and they note that cancellations lead schools to tack on extra days at the end of the year.
Different ways states have reacted to the storm
In New Jersey, the state restricts the circumstances in which remote learning can be used. State law generally mandates students be in a classroom for the day to count toward the minimum days of instruction. If schools remain closed for three consecutive days, remote learning can count towards the minimum days of instruction, according to the law.
Parts of Texas were hit hard by Sunday’s snowstorm, and the Dallas school system in response announced school closures on Monday and Tuesday. The district also said it was scheduling make-up school days. If more snow days occur, the school system can get a waiver from the Texas Education Agency to avoid having to add make-up days at the end of the school year, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Other districts are mixing both snow days and remote learning.
In northern Virginia, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid said in a public statement, students were encouraged “to take their devices and materials home as a precaution, while emphasizing that [the district is] not shifting to remote learning and that we also value the importance of snow days.”
Parents have been receiving links for students to join online reading challenges and are encouraged to finish up incomplete assignments.
The availability of online learning options seems to have influenced district approaches to dealing with bad weather.
In an EdWeek Research Center survey of K-12 administrators and educators conducted in 2024, nearly 6 in 10 said the number of snow days their school systems had built into their calendars had remained unchanged over the previous year.
When those who said their district or school had made a change were asked why they had do so, the largest percentage, 46 percent, cited the availability of remote learning options.
Respondents to a separate Education Week query on LinkedIn and Facebook offered a variety of views on the value of remote learning after weather events.
One said that in many cases of extreme weather, online instruction is not appropriate.
However, if weather affects roads but not infrastructure like power, then “remote learning to reduce the number of makeup days for the summer seems like a great option,” said the commenter, Brooke C. on LinkedIn.
But another said the pandemic offered lessons on tech-based learning—and not positive ones.
“Did we not learn from covid the instabilities of remote ‘learning?’” said Andy K. on Facebook. “Let the kids enjoy the snow. Give them work like submit a photo of a snowman you built, or write a paragraph about your snowball fight.”
