Temperatures plummeted to well below zero last Thursday, 27th February, resulting in many questions about school cancellations. There was much anticipation among students and parents alike about whether the cold weather would be deemed too dangerous for children to attend school. However, Minneapolis Public Schools stayed silent on both its website and Facebook page, where many go to get information about such issues.

As a student, I expect to be kept informed on days like this, where rumors fly quickly and speculations abound. Whether school will take place on a certain day or not, the verdict should be announced as soon as possible. To be left in the dark is frustrating, to say the least.

On days where extreme temperatures are forecasted (and turn out to occur), everyone will be talking about it. When this happens, the district is responsible for notifying students, parents and teachers if there will be school, and how the decision is made so that we can make informed decisions.

On the coldest of days, when school turns out to indeed be cancelled, more problems seem to arise. Since the beginning of the new year, there have been more than average snow days (though they might instead be called “cold days”). And multiple times, MPS has only announced its decision late in the evening or very early in the morning. At these times of day (or, rather, night) most people are asleep and only when they awake do they learn of the cancellation. By waiting so long to come to a decision, MPS has been irresponsible and ignored the desire of all to be notified enough time in advance.

This especially poses a problem to parents of younger children, who may have to take off work or find daycare if school is called off. It makes it substantially more difficult for them to do this when they only find out it’s necessary at 6 a.m.

To conclude: even if school is not cancelled, on a day where anticipation is high and everyone craves information, it should be the responsibility of MPS to release its decision as soon as possible. This includes days when classes are, in fact, going to be held.