How do districts decide to cancel school during severe weather?

Whenever winter weather rolls through, educators are faced with the tough job of deciding if schools need to close to keep students safe.

That decision is often made by the school superintendent, although a district's transportation supervisor may also help make the call, according to AccuWeather. Administrators typically begin watching the forecast a day before a severe weather event is supposed to hit. In some situations, several neighboring districts may collaborate to make the call together.

During a storm, they will communicate with local highway departments and other transportation agencies to determine how long it will take to clear roadways.

And at the end of the day, administrators must take into account how comfortable the community is with having school during a weather event. An inch of snow is a bigger deal to a community in Virginia than one in Maine.