Thus far in the school year, District 203 has called three days off: Jan. 7 and 8 due to the cold weather and Feb. 7 due to snow accumulation.  The low temperatures on the “cold” days were -9.1 degrees and -6.7 degrees Fahrenheit respectively. Today is just as, if not more so, cold than the previous days District 203 has called off.

When I woke up this morning, I instantly checked my phone: first Twitter, and then, when I realized we still had to go to school, Weather.com. And what was I greeted with? A bright orange alert saying “Wind Chill Advisory.” (Because yes, that was still going on when students were making their way to school.) The National Weather Service warned that, in our area, a “wind-chill advisory remains in effect until noon CST. Wind chill values [may reach] 20 below to 30 below zero… Frostbite can occur in a matter of minutes on exposed skin.”

And later, when driving to school, I heard radio station 101.9 announce that the temperature around 7:30 a.m. was -8 degrees Fahrenheit with wind-chill reaching -28 degrees. Yes, I was warm. I had my jacket on and the heat was blasting. But I wasn’t worried about just me. I was more concerned for the second graders that have to walk to school in the bitter cold, tottering along in the six layers their worried parents dressed them in, the parents that had to be late to work to drive their children to school so they would be safe, the upperclassmen with cars who’s heat doesn’t work or those that have to walk a quarter mile from their parking spot. This is for the freshmen who, reading the bus slip they receive at registration, dutifully arrive 5-10 minutes early at their bus stop so they don’t miss their ride like the school tells them to.

Yes, it’s Naperville. We live here, we have the resources and the history to deal with the winters. But these past few years have been exceedingly cold, and the school has closed on multiple occasions in the past when roads were clear yet conditions were still similarly dangerous to today. And not only has District 203 set a precedent of closing schools when temperatures dip deep into the negatives, nearly every other school in Illinois was closed, according to the Emergency Closing Center website.

So if cold, hard facts have, evidentially, no factor in District 203’s decision, what does? To me, it seems like a matter of pride. Students have been getting increasingly rowdy on their Twitter accounts, from Photoshop-ing pictures of Dan Bridges to creating a video mocking the decision, with the majority of them rallying in favor of having school off. By not giving them that, the District is proving their authority. It was made evident today that students could be rude and obnoxious on Twitter all they want, but when it comes down to it, Dan Bridges makes the decisions, and Naperville kids throwing tantrums has no effect.

But that shouldn’t be the case; the temperament of the district leadership should not affect whether or not we get the day off, the temperature should. Last year, we received four days off of school, many of them being due to the cold rather than the snow. So you would think the grand District 203 could spend at least part of that entire year setting regulations and policies regarding this. Instead, students are forced to deal with inconsistent, misleading decisions, as well as the freezing cold.

Yes, I expected a day off of school today, but not in the way I wish for vacation to be longer, but in the way that I expect to get a Plasco if I’m late to class.  Not in the way that I longingly ask for something ridiculous when I know the answer will be “no,” but in the way that I expect a teacher to follow through with their promise.

Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I expected District 203, who has been so successful in so many other areas, to be consistent and considerate in their decision making.