Westford Public Schools received double snow days on Monday, Feb. 23 and Tuesday, Feb. 24. Although the day off on Monday was completely understandable and expected, it was difficult to understand the necessity of the subsequent snow day based on the quick turnaround of clean-up crews in the past. However, Superintendent Dr. Christopher Chew explained that high winds and snow drifts resulted in the clearance being more difficult than prior accumulations, making both days reasonable calls.

A two-hour delay on Wednesday, Feb. 25 may have been slightly safer for students commuting to school, but the full day on Wednesday prevented any further adjustments to lesson plans which was ideal after losing two full days of classes.

Chew announced Monday’s snow day early on Sunday evening to little surprise and full support from the community. However, Chew’s decision to call off school on Tuesday came as a shock. His rationale in the phone call was that there would not have been enough cleanup time to have schools open by the next day. However, according to the weather app, snowfall was predicted to end before 6 p.m. on Monday evening, raising questions as to why the Tuesday snow day was necessary.

“I don’t think the snow day [Tuesday] was necessary at all,” junior Tanish Peddi said. “It didn’t really make any sense.”

In reality, the harsh winds made it difficult for road crews to safely clean up the mess left behind by the blizzard. In order to address the compounding snow drifts left behind and to make the roads truly safe for all community members, the Tuesday snow day was truly necessary.

However, these extra days off have not come without an educational cost: Advanced Placement (AP) teachers have also expressed concern for their classes. With a fast-paced curriculum, even a single day can be responsible for introducing crucial information for the AP exams that students may miss out on when school is cancelled — and even though the last day of school gets pushed back, the dates of the AP exams do not because each exam takes place on one day all across the country.

“On a personal level, I needed the two days, and I feel refreshed having had them as a teacher,” AP French Language and Culture teacher Katrina Lackner said. “However, in terms of the content, I feel like it’s always a race and there’s never enough time to get through the AP content, even in a regular school year. So any missed days are always [not ideal].”

Unlike Tuesday, there was snowfall on Wednesday, Feb. 25 which provided reason to call a two-hour delay. From around 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Wednesday morning, an inch and a half of snow fell consistently, backed by windy conditions. Westford Academy Principal Dan Twomey delayed the morning bell for five minutes to allow students and staff who were struggling with the inclement weather extra time to arrive at the building, and senior dean Amanda Welch sent an email out to seniors asking them to consider staying indoors during any Designated Learning Times (DLTs).

Overall, Westford received approximately 10.5 inches of snow by the end of the storm on Monday. Although widely broadcast as an intense blizzard, the storm was never predicted to hit northeastern Massachusetts nearly as severely as southern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, where several schools were shut down for the entire week.

The Ghostwriter would like to give Dr. Chew an A for his calls. Wednesday could have potentially been a two-hour delay as well. However, Chew’s decision to declare Monday a snow day was well-made and timely. Similarly, the Tuesday snow day call was made reasonably in advance, and left enough hours in the day to provide students, parents, and staff with ample time to plan accordingly.