Bangor Parents Asking for Schools to Reinstate Snow Days

A petition being circulated by some parents of Bangor students is asking administrators to reinstate a few snow days for this winter.

The Bangor school system's current plan would have children going to remote learning on stormy days, instead of the age-old tradition of 'snow days.' When school was under the traditional model, students would be allowed to take the day off when the weather was too treacherous for busses to deliver students safely. But with the pandemic came remote learning models, where students can go online to learn the day's lessons. Bangor administrators decided that, instead of having snow days over the 2020-2021 winter, they would simply have students open their computers and learn remotely on those days when they can't get to the school.

Several other school systems have opted to continue with the practice of snow days. In Brewer, administrators decided to keep snow days on the calendar, out of a fear that too many students might not have access to the internet on stormy days, due to power and service outages. The Bangor parents' group behind the petition agree, but not because of challenges connecting to the internet. Their reasons are much more personal.

The online petition talks about how many things kids have already lost this year, including fewer in-school days and less time with friends.

"Snow days are a magical unexpected break, a breather...a little gift from mother nature in the middle of long Maine winters."

The petition can be found online and is 95% of its way to completion. Whether it will sway the administration's plans for the school calendar remains to be seen. Updates can be found on the Bangor Snow Days Compromise Facebook page.