How Wisconsin schools decide when to call a 'cold day'

Administrators pondering decision as temps plummet

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How Wisconsin schools decide when to call a 'cold day'

MIDDLETON, Wis. — Dozens of schools across southern Wisconsin are running on two-hour delays or starting at 10 a.m. Friday morning as air temperatures are well below zero and wind chills approach -35. A handful of schools in rural areas have also cancelled school altogether.

You can find an up-to-date list of school delays and closings on News 3 This Morning and here on Channel3000.com.

The majority of school administrators in south-central Wisconsin say the decision of whether or not to hold classes on a dangerously cold day is black and white: once the windchill hits -35, they cancel school.

Windchills of 30 to 40 below zero can cause frostbite in 10 minutes or less. That's why health experts and the National Weather Service recommend districts cancel classes at that mark. Middleton-Cross Plains, Sun Prairie, Verona and many rural districts all follow that precedent.

But last school year, the Madison Metropolitan School District changed its class cancellation policy to windchills of minus 25 degrees after finding more students skip school on extremely cold days.

"It tends to be sort of a pack mentality; if one school calls off, the other ones do as well. We'll have to decide if we want to do the same thing as Madison if Madison ends up calling," said Perry Hibner, communications director for the Middleton-Cross Plains district. "They didn't have to do any cold weather days last year, so this is a new phenomenon for us. Madison sort of does their own thing, but the surrounding ones, us, Sun Prairie, Verona, and Waunakee, we're suburban but we all have rural routes."

Madison schools are closed on Friday, but as part of a scheduled day off, and not for the cold.

Other district administrators say they try to call off school by 9 p.m. the night before to give parents enough time to make arrangements for their kids.

Most Wisconsin school districts build in an extra five to six days, or 35 to 40 classroom hours, into their schedule for weeks like this: where snow and cold cause cancellations. Administrators say that's what we get for living in Wisconsin.

"Just because we had a snow day Wednesday has no bearing on whether we call a day tomorrow or whether the forecast calls for snow Sunday into Monday," said Hibner. "We'll evaluate each one of those independently. And when it's right to call off school, we'll call off school."

Sunday night's storm could be more challenging for area schools. For snow days, there are no clear-cut guidelines. Administrators take how much snow fell, how clear the roads are, and whether sidewalks are cleared into consideration.

If you have any questions about your school's weather cancellation policy, it's recommended you call your district.

Get your weather forecast from people who actually live in your community. We update with short, easy-to-use video forecasts you can watch on your phone every day. Download the iOS or Android app here.

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