FORT WORTH – Stripling Middle School was quiet Tuesday, except for the sound of melting ice.
Class here and all over Fort Worth was canceled Tuesday out of concern for the conditions.
"They don't seem to be too bad, you know, but they made the call last night," said Scott Hiett, who's a science teacher at Stripling.
It's a complicated call to make, according to FWISD spokesman Clint Bond.
"What it comes down to is safety -- is it safe for our children to walk to school if they have to? Is it safe for children to be on buses?" Bond said.
And while the answer may be "yes" in some areas, it's "no" in others, as we saw on our assignment Tuesday.
Outside Arlington Heights High near Hulen and Interstate 30, the sidewalks were clear, but directly across the street was a snowy, somewhat slick walkway, in an area kids may walk on to get home from school.
"We just have to make a general call based on the overall safety situation," Bond said.
So that's what they did, canceling classes Monday and Tuesday for nearly 86,000 students and 10,000 employees, including Hiett.
His little girl also had this Tuesday off. He said her private school makes decisions based off Fort Worth ISD.
Hiett said even though the day turned out to be clear and dry, "I'd rather be safe than sorry, I imagine. I imagine that's the way they felt in the district."
And when it comes to children, that "better safe than sorry" mindset is more than okay by him.
FWISD says the district has now maxed out on its snow days that were built into the schedule; if they need a third day, district leadership will have to discuss what to do.
