{"id":72517,"date":"2026-02-09T18:43:06","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T23:43:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/?p=72517"},"modified":"2026-02-09T18:50:48","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T23:50:48","slug":"michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Michigan\u2019s harsh winter and school closings: What to know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Tough winter means lots of canceled school days<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Superintendents can cancel school six times without penalty before needing approval from the state<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>So far, 15 school districts have requested state waivers for additional emergency days<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>With warmer weather forecast, there\u2019s some relief for schools where extreme cold and snow have wreaked havoc on the school calendar.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Superintendents across the state weigh several factors when <a href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/snow-days-cold-days-how-michigan-schools-decide-its-time-cancel-classes\/\">deciding whether to call off school<\/a>. That includes weather forecasts, road conditions, staffing trends and other districts\u2019 actions.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Northern Michigan, Johannesburg-Lewiston Area Schools Superintendent&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Katy Xenakis-Makowski, has already called eight snow days this year. That\u2019s a lot, but still less than last year when the district called off normal snow days and then had to call <a href=\"https:\/\/www.9and10news.com\/2025\/04\/09\/johannesburg-lewiston-area-schools-are-heading-back-to-school-almost-2-weeks-after-the-ice-storm\/\">off more because of an April ice storm<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Related:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/michigan-environment-watch\/ice-grips-great-lakes-with-erie-nearly-fully-covered\/\"><strong>Ice grips Great Lakes, with Erie nearly fully covered<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/quality-life\/michigan-athletes-go-for-gold-in-winter-olympics-who-and-when-to-watch\/\"><strong>Michigan athletes go for gold in Winter Olympics. Who and when to watch<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/michigan-government\/gretchen-whitmer-seeks-625m-for-literacy-tax-holiday-for-school-supplies\/\"><strong>Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer seeks $625M for literacy, tax \u2018holiday\u2019 for school supplies<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe appreciate people who understand what a difficult decision it is: weighing staff and student safety against the need to be in school. It\u2019s not a decision that any superintendent makes lightly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s what to know about snow days by the numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How much school is required by law?<\/strong><br><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><br>Michigan school districts must have 1,098 hours and 180 days.<br><br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How many snow days are schools allowed to have?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Michigan school districts can cancel school for up to six days for unforeseen circumstances such bad weather or a maintenance issue.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What if a school district needs more days?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Districts can request a waiver for up to three days from the Michigan Department of Education. After that, they have to make up the time by adding more days to the school calendar.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How many school districts have requested waivers so far?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>There are 15 school districts who have requested waivers so far, according to MDE. That\u2019s out of roughly 800.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>School leaders often wait until the late spring to submit their requests.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Is this weather particularly bad?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><br><\/strong>Total snowfall is up compared to a normal year near Gaylord and Detroit, according to the National Weather Service. But February isn\u2019t the end of the winter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf you take a snapshot now, it\u2019s been severe, said NWS Detroit meteorologist Steve Freitag. But Freitag cautions there\u2019s still nearly six weeks left in the winter.<br><br>\u201cOnce we get this warmer weather in February and March turns out to be nice, that will be a distant memory.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What about low student attendance?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Parents who brave the roads to get students to school may choose to keep a student home even if school is in session.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But too many students can trigger a different issue.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Schools get financially penalized if less than 75% of students show up for school on any given day. Last year, there were <a href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigan-absenteeism-faq-whos-to-blame-what-are-penalties-to-schools-kids\/\">162 school districts that faced potential penalties<\/a> for low student attendance, Bridge previously reported. Ultimately, this cost districts a total of $11.5 million.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What happens when schools are out?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Lessons get pushed back when school doesn\u2019t occur.In Pontiac, Superintendent Kimberly Leverette said the district moved testing for English language learners and moved the start of the second semester for high school students.<br><br>\u201cBalancing safety, learning time, and state requirements isn&#8217;t always easy, but our goal is to make careful decisions that protect students while keeping schools on track,\u201d Leverette said in an email to Bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Benton Harbor, the district has used four emergency days, prompting the district to extend the testing window for third grade through 12th grade students, superintendent Simone Griffin said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When the forecast turns extremely cold or snowy, superintendents call school off. It prompts cheers from students and some headaches for the school calendar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":581,"featured_media":72518,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"2026-02-09T23:43:11Z","apple_news_api_id":"f5649e19-30db-4d95-9885-adf3e57442c4","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2026-02-09T23:50:47Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAg==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/A9WSeGTDbTZWYha3z5XRCxA","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[2454],"tags":[1510],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[2475],"class_list":["post-72517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-talent-education","tag-michigan-k-12-schools","entry"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Michigan\u2019s harsh winter and school closings: What to know - Bridge Michigan<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Michigan\u2019s harsh winter and school closings: What to know - Bridge Michigan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When the forecast turns extremely cold or snowy, superintendents call school off. It prompts cheers from students and some headaches for the school calendar.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Bridge Michigan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BridgeMichigan\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-09T23:43:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-09T23:50:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1-28-25_NAEP-scores_22-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Isabel Lohman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@bridgemichigan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@bridgemichigan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Isabel Lohman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Isabel Lohman\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#\/schema\/person\/11c180026f82614f93c19d9f138d3e0b\"},\"headline\":\"Michigan\u2019s harsh winter and school closings: What to know\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-09T23:43:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-09T23:50:48+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\"},\"wordCount\":627,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1-28-25_NAEP-scores_22-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"Michigan K-12 schools\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Talent &amp; Education\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\",\"name\":\"Michigan\u2019s harsh winter and school closings: What to know - Bridge Michigan\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1-28-25_NAEP-scores_22-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-09T23:43:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-09T23:50:48+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1-28-25_NAEP-scores_22-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1-28-25_NAEP-scores_22-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"Before calling a snow day, Michigan school superintendents must weigh concerns about bad weather and the need for students to be in school to learn. Some districts are already requesting extra days from the state. (Annie Barker for Bridge Michigan)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/michigans-harsh-winter-and-school-closings-what-to-know\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Michigan\u2019s harsh winter and school closings: What to know\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/\",\"name\":\"Bridge Michigan\",\"description\":\"Michigan\u2019s nonpartisan, nonprofit news source\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Bridge Michigan\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/logo-500.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/logo-500.svg\",\"width\":500,\"height\":188,\"caption\":\"Bridge Michigan\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BridgeMichigan\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/bridgemichigan\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/bridge.michigan\",\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/bridgemi.com\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@bridge.michigan\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#\/schema\/person\/11c180026f82614f93c19d9f138d3e0b\",\"name\":\"Isabel Lohman\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/59a1c89874d2a10a4d68e7d2928bf9fa\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/isabel3-96x96.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/isabel3-96x96.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Isabel Lohman\"},\"description\":\"Isabel reports on early childhood, K-12 and higher education for Bridge Michigan. She loves visiting schools and analyzing how policies made in Lansing affect students and educators. Previously, she was the children\u2019s issues reporter for the Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee. There, she reported on the state's third-largest public school district's COVID-19 response and how a community copes after losing teenagers to gun violence. Isabel grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and has also lived in Missouri, Tennessee and Belgium. Isabel moved to Ann Arbor in January 2022 where she experienced her first Michigan winter. She has a warm winter hat with a snap-on puff ball. 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Some districts are already requesting extra days from the state. 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And while teachers are 77 percent female, superintendents are 77 percent male. State leaders say it\u2019s hard to find diverse candidates. Minority leaders see other factors at work.\u00a0","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Talent &amp; Education&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Talent &amp; Education","link":"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/category\/talent-education\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"These 20 Michigan superintendents are an approximation of the demographic and gender mix of the state\u2019s 578 school leaders \u2013 overwhelmingly male and almost completely white.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Supers1-002.jpg?fit=1000%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Supers1-002.jpg?fit=1000%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Supers1-002.jpg?fit=1000%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Supers1-002.jpg?fit=1000%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7467,"url":"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/guest-commentary\/opinion-amend-third-grade-reading-law-school-superintendents-urge\/","url_meta":{"origin":72517,"position":4},"title":"Opinion | Amend third-grade reading law, U.P. school superintendents urge","author":"Upper Peninsula school superintendents","date":"February 26, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"\"Flunking a student is immediately traumatic and is more likely to be experienced by those students who are categorized as poor, male and\/or minority,\" the\u00a0group of Upper Peninsula school superintendents writes.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Guest Commentary&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Guest Commentary","link":"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/category\/guest-commentary\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/3rd_grade_slide_7.jpg?fit=1120%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/3rd_grade_slide_7.jpg?fit=1120%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/3rd_grade_slide_7.jpg?fit=1120%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/3rd_grade_slide_7.jpg?fit=1120%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bridgemi.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/3rd_grade_slide_7.jpg?fit=1120%2C600&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7843,"url":"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/talent-education\/majority-michigan-public-schools-started-school-year-short-teachers\/","url_meta":{"origin":72517,"position":5},"title":"Majority of Michigan public schools started school year short on teachers","author":"Ron French","date":"September 26, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A survey of superintendents confirms a teacher shortage forcing schools to turn to less-qualified long-term substitutes.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Talent &amp; 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