As Snow Days Accumulate, Nauset Officials Discuss Options

 ORLEANS – From extensive power outages to fallen wires, trees, limbs and other debris, there’s been no shortage of complications brought on by the Blizzard of ‘26. But local school districts have been wrestling with another problem raised by the recent storm.

 Snow days.

 The blizzard forced the closure of schools in the Nauset and Monomoy regional school districts for a full week coming off of this year’s scheduled February vacation. That brings the number of snow days this year in both districts to six, pushing both closer to the June 30 deadline to complete the school year.

 Monomoy School Superintendent Scott Carpenter said in an email that the recent blizzard was the first instance in his 33 years as a professional educator in which he’s seen school close for a full week due to snow. He said right now, the district is due to wrap up the school year on June 26. While he acknowledged that that could interfere with some families’ summer schedules, Carpenter said the district will work to accommodate impacted students and families.

 In Nauset, Superintendent Glenn Brand said that the district may seek an exemption from the 180 school day requirement for public schools through the state Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education.

 “The question in these kinds of circumstances is, is there any possible waiver,” he told the Nauset regional school committee March 4.

 Brand made the distinction between total number of school days and what the state requires for instruction hours for schools to complete the school year. According to the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website, elementary schools are required to meet a minimum of 900 hours of “structured learning time” each school year. Secondary schools (middle and high schools) are required to complete 990 hours. 

 “Student learning time is a precious resource,” according to the website. “We recognize that rescheduling days when a school has closed mid-year may be inconvenient but depending on when in the school year the days are missed, school officials should be able to make the arrangements necessary so that students do not lose valuable learning time.”

 Waivers from the 180 day requirement are considered on a “case-by-case basis” for districts that have exhausted their 185 day school schedule, which includes for five built-in snow days.

 “There is no automatic waiver,” Brand told the regional school committee, adding that the district would have to “petition” the commissioner to allow one.

 Currently, Nauset’s schedule pushes the end of school “well into the last week” of June, Brand said. He also noted that school will be closed in recognition of the Juneteenth holiday on June 19. But even with a waiver, he said, school cannot continue past June 30.

 Brand also provided the school committee with a broader update on the district’s response to the February blizzard. Power outages forced the closure of school on Monday and Tuesday of the blizzard, he said. By Wednesday, he said “it became fairly clear” that local public works departments needed additional time for clean up before classes could resume.

 Apart from a few fallen trees on some school campuses, Brand said the district incurred “very little damage” from the storm. On Friday, Feb. 27, staff returned to school buildings to get settled in and troubleshoot any lingering issues ahead of the restart of classes on March 2. 

 “By all accounts school started again this week without a hitch,” he said.