North Texas schools move up games due to cold, but will classes be canceled?
Games pushed up due to forecasted cold
Schools decided early on to move up games set for later this week to accommodate the coming cold weather. However, decisions about canceling classes later this week have not yet been made.
ARLINGTON, Texas - North Texas school districts decided early on to move soccer games set for later this week to Monday to accommodate the coming cold weather.
However, decisions about canceling classes later this week have not yet been made.
It was chilly Monday evening, but it was nothing compared to what is headed our way this week.
What we know:
Despite the cold winter air headed to North Texas, the spring sports season is in full swing.
Eric White is the director of athletics for Arlington ISD. He says with the coldest temperatures of the season heading to North Texas, the district made the decision last Friday to move all varsity girls’ and boys' soccer games from Tuesday to Monday.
"We take it day by day. We were a little ahead with this one on a Friday coming into Monday and Tuesday and knew we had this day," said White. "But the rest of the week, about 48 hours out is when we start to get aggressive with our decisions and looking at it."
Fort Worth ISD followed suit and moved all soccer games to Monday. It’s considering canceling all track and field events on Wednesday.
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Dallas ISD also made similar schedule adjustments.
Despite Monday’s sun, families in the stands at the Lamar High School boys' varsity soccer game were still bundled up as the shade and wind made it feel even colder.
Justin Villegas and his family were happy with the schedule change for his brother's game. And if school is called off because of the freezing temperatures, that would make his younger siblings happy.
"They’re hoping for like a day off of school. They’re hoping for that," he said. "But for me, there’s no day off for work."
Will Dallas schools close this week?
Unlike last month's snow event, kids may need to brave bitterly cold temperatures to get to school this time around.
What's next:
Right now, many school districts are still waiting to make the call on classes this week. It’s not so much a concern for winter precipitation as it is for kids to be out in dangerous cold waiting for a bus.
Both Dallas ISD and Richardson ISD say the cold weather alone will not prompt schools to close. However, they will be closely monitoring road and building conditions. More updates are expected later this week.
White says if school is canceled, then athletic events will be canceled too.
"If it’s not safe enough for school, it’s not safe enough for athletics," he said. "So that’s the general guideline we’re gonna with."
And if school is not canceled, then there are temperature restrictions the district takes into consideration for sporting events.
"We look at the actual temperature, the air temperature. We start looking at 32 degrees and below. We start varying things, wind chills below 25," said White. "And any time you bring in precipitation, that's also going to weigh on us. Those are kind of our magic numbers."
White says everyone involved, including the coaching staff, referees, security and administration, share their input before a decision is made to change the sports schedule.
White says the district will reassess games for the rest of the week first thing Tuesday morning.
School districts are expected to provide an update on any class cancelations or delays also on Tuesday. They will be posted here.
The Source: Information in this article comes from Arlington ISD Athletics Director Eric White and statements from various school districts.