What is too cool for school? Nebraska districts decide as winter chill settles in

WAVERLY, Neb. (KLKN) – Winter’s biting chill isn’t just a seasonal inconvenience; it’s a challenge for school districts and families.

Cold weather is a part of life in Nebraska, but when the degrees begin to drop, concerns rise.

School districts across the state face tough choices in these conditions.

Cory Worrell, superintendent of Waverly Public Schools, said there’s a lot of communication that takes place when it comes to any weather-related decisions that schools make.

“Frigid temperatures are hard because I don’t know if there’s a certain number where we say if we get to 10 below or 20 below,” he said. “Sometimes though, it’s based on, can your buses run?”

Waverly started school on time on Monday, but Worrell said with some districts spanning miles of rural roads, decisions about whether to close or delay school are not taken lightly.

For an example, a two-hour late start gives county crews more time to clear the roads.

But Worrell said there are drawbacks.

“A two-hour late start in our district, though, can be tough at times on families,” he said. “When parents are scrambling in the morning, ‘What do we do with our kids? We got to go to work, but we have kids here, and they’re young. They got to get to get to school by 10:20 or something.'”

In some cases, the decision comes down to how students get to school, and for some, it may not be a short walk.

When wind chills drop too low, those minutes could make all the difference.

“We realized we have a number of kids that walk or waiting at pickup points for our buses, we don’t want them sitting out in weather like that,” Worrell said.

He said sometimes it’s hard to balance education and safety, but the students’ safety will always come first.