This week’s winter storm and extreme cold forced students across the region to stay home, but the missed school days will still need to be made up before summer break.
How districts handle those make-up days varies. In Johnson County, Kentucky, schools have already closed 13 days this school year because of weather. District leaders have confirmed the school calendar will be extended, with winter conditions still far from over.
“So far this year, we have used seven NTI [non-traditional instruction] days and six traditional snow days of those 13,” said Johnson County Schools Assistant Superintendent Noel Crum.
Winter-related closures can also affect spring events later in the year. Crum said graduation dates may need to be adjusted.
“Right now they are already having to look at moving dates,” Crum said.
School calendar requirements differ by state. In Ohio, schools must operate for a minimum of 1,000 hours each year, with individual districts setting their own calendars and often building in extra time for severe weather.
West Virginia law requires 180 instructional days, including five non-traditional instruction days that may be used as make-up days, along with five snow days already included in the calendar.
In Kentucky, each weather-related closure adds an extra day to the school year. Districts are allowed up to 10 non-traditional instruction days, which still count as instructional days.
Using NTI days helps reduce the number of snow days that must be made up.
“I do think that the NTI system is fantastic in that for 10 days there are plenty of instructional opportunities that would not need to occur inside the brick-and-mortar building, and you can still carry on very meaningful learning from the computer screen at home,” Crum said.
With spring still a couple of months away, school officials hope winter weather will not lead to further cancellations or additional calendar changes.