A few years ago Wake County Public Schools cancelled classes for two days because of a threatened hurricane. Total rainfall at Raleigh-Durham Airport was one inch.

Pandemic instruction by Zoom was in vogue. One day there was actual rain. Wake County told its 150,000 students to study on their own. I protested to the school board and offered my services. The next time this occurred I offered to teach all 4th graders in the entire system for an hour of geography or history. I would need two tech people to help. One of the senior board members responded. She would help me teach as well.

The reason for that day’s cancellation of instruction? Actual rain. Some teachers would not be able to get to their schools to teach Zoom classes from the school building!

The night before December 8, 2025, school was cancelled for impending “wintry weather.” Dawn revealed business parking lots full. I invited my high school grandsons to go swimming with me outside at the Triangle Aquatic Center. When we arrived at 2:00 I was surprised to see extensive parking lots full. Many swim teams had moved up their practice schedules for the new wintry weather forecast to arrive at 4:00. There was still room for us in the heated outdoor pool. We enjoyed a long swim in 30° air and 80° water.

Due to impending “wintry weather” forecast for December 9, the school system again cancelled school. I did find 1/10 inch of snow on my car. I headed out to work.

All of these decisions were done out of concern for the safety of  children. Most children will not be safer at home than traveling to school and staying there for the day. When the school system cancels classes many children will be home alone. Some parents or caretakers will be unable to skip work. Some parents will think that their children will be fine in these circumstances. They will either be home alone or at the mall, the movie theater, swimming, playing basketball or soccer at the park, or even skateboarding and other bone-breaking activities.

My “back of the envelope” estimate is that each day that school is closed taxpayers will see about $7 million of missed education for school children. Cynics would say that the system is trying to minimize the system’s financial liability for accidents and shift that liability to parents.

What is the purpose of a public school system? I hope the purpose is education rather than childcare. I hope that the system would consider that children are just as exposed to harm when school is suddenly closed as when it is open.

In my day we did not walk to school when the snow was a foot deep. That is a pleasant myth. I never remember school closed for rain or for 1/10 of an inch of snow.