Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) will open two hours late Thursday “out of an abundance of caution due to extremely cold temperatures and overnight refreezing causing dangerous conditions in some areas,” according to a Wednesday night announcement.
MCPS would be exploring the decision by early morning and, if necessary, would announce any change by 5 a.m., according to the announcement. At roughly 5:00 a.m., the district announced that the schools would still be under a two-hour delay on Thursday.
Thursday will mark the fourth consecutive school day impacted by the winter storm. Classes on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were all canceled due to more than 5 inches of snow impacting the area.
According to the 2024-2025 school calendar, the district has set aside two inclement weather days, both of which have now been used. With a third snow day being called, the district may have to choose one of the following days to use as a make-up day — Jan. 29, March 31, June 6, June 16-18, June 20 and June 23. The last day of school for students is scheduled for June 13.
According to the announcement, morning buses will pick up students two hours late. Field trips and other activities and programs that begin at 10:30 a.m. or earlier, such as the Thomas Edison High School of Technology, are canceled. Infant and Toddler appointments scheduled before 10:00 a.m. will be canceled and services scheduled after 10:00 a.m. will continue as scheduled, the announcement said.
PreK/Head Start and PreK Special Education programs that are held in the morning are canceled but will be held in the afternoon. Families should contact their child care provider, according to the announcement, because before, after-school, and child care programs may operate as scheduled. Use of schools for community programs will occur as scheduled.
According to the MCPS website, the district decides whether to close schools during bad weather by utilizing information from the National Weather Service, Accu-Weather and the news media as well as inspecting roads, school driveways and sidewalks throughout the county. According to the website, an evening decision to close schools will occur by 7 p.m., but if necessary, a morning decision can be made by 5 a.m.
The decision to close schools is always made for the entire school district, according to the website, because many students are transported beyond their home school attendance area.
Other school districts in the surrounding area have made a variety of decisions concerning school openings for Thursday. According to WTOP, Fairfax County Schools in Virginia closed schools Thursday, while Alexandria City Public Schools have announced a 2-hour delay. Prince George’s County Public Schools have also closed schools Thursday.
