In Mahwah, Snow Days Are For 'Memory-Making,' Not Remote Learning

MAHWAH, NJ — With up to a foot of snow in the forecast for Wednesday night, students in Mahwah could be looking at their first snow day of the year Thursday.

Despite differing approaches to snow days in 2020 thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, Mahwah Public Schools announced back in October that students in the district will get to enjoy the same day off that they always have.

In a letter, Interim Superintendent Leonard Fitts shared his thoughts on the importance of snow days with the district.

"Snow days are chances for on-site learners and virtual learners to just be kids by playing in the snow, baking cookies, reading books, and watching a good movie," said Fitts. "These are times for memory-making, and we believe these types of opportunities should remain intact."

According to a recent survey from the EdWeek Research Center, Mahwah is in the minority of districts who've chosen this approach for 2020.

The survey found that 39 percent of districts will now use snow days as remote learning days, while an additional 31 percent haven't made the decision to get rid of snow days yet, but are considering it.

Of the districts polled, only 20 percent, like Mahwah, made the official decision to keep snow days.

Mahwah acknowledged that there is a benefit to virtual learning, and thus, the district doesn't see a case that it will need to use more than the four snow days built into the district schedule.

With that said, given that 2020 has been filled with almost entirely with dread, Fitts and the district have decided to give Mahwah students at least one thing to look forward to.

"We have decided that few childhood acts remain unchanged due to COVID-19 and we will maintain the hope of children by calling actual snow days due to inclement weather," he wrote.

Last week, the Mahwah administrative team provided a few more specifics about the process of calling a snow day.

As the district is currently operating a hybrid learning model, safe transportation of students is a top priority.

If the district deems the roads unsafe, they will announce a final decision to the district by 5 a.m. Due to the current operating model of the schools, delayed start days are not a possibility, the administrative team said.

According to the National Weather Service, rain and snow are expected Monday, but accumulation is limited to just 1-2 inches.

On Wednesday, however, the NWS forecasts a possible accumulation of 8-12 inches overnight, on top of the inch possible during the day.

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