Official Procedure for Making Snow Day Decisions
During the winter months, as snow falls and frost coats windows across Chicago, many students still bundle up and head to school. Chicago Public Schools (CPS) maintains clear guidelines for weather-related closures. Still, there are times when conditions become too dangerous, and CPS cancels classes to keep students and staff safe.
Just recently on Friday, January 23, the district closed every public school in the city. CPS closures are district-wide, so if CPS cancels classes due to snow, cold, or other hazardous conditions, all CPS schools are closed for that day.
CPS usually doesn’t have to extend the school year after a snow day because the district calendar already includes five built-in emergency days to account for situations like severe weather, according to Illinois Legal Aid.
While there is no strict, fixed temperature for when school closes, CPS bases their decision on a variety of factors according to NBC Chicago and CPS Weather Guidelines. Closures typically happen only in extreme cold or wind chill situations, like wind chills near −30 °F to −35 °F, when student safety regarding travel and waiting outdoors is seriously threatened. Families can be updated on school closure statuses by going to this link:
This is CPS’s list of criteria for determining a school closure:
- Air temperature and wind chill.
- The amount of snow and ice on the ground.
- The accessibility of buildings and roads.
- Potential issues with heating/cooling systems or power outages.
- The ability to transport students safely on buses.
