Friday, Apr. 5, 2024
Are schools around the US closing for the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024?
Schools in at least eight states will close April 8, 2024, because of the solar eclipse that day, according to news reports.
The states are Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Vermont.
Except for New Jersey, those states — as well as Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky, New Hampshire and Maine — are in the eclipse’s “path of totality,” according to NASA.
Some schools cited “safety reasons” and “uncertainties of the day”; others expected traffic problems because of visitors wanting to see the eclipse.
Viewing the total solar eclipse — when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the sun — is unsafe without specialized eye protection, according to NASA.
Jon Bales, executive director of the Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators, said “there has been no statewide conversation” among Wisconsin superintendents for school closures and he wasn’t aware of any in Wisconsin.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- New York Post Hundreds of schools in path of total solar eclipse cancel classes over safety concerns
- Newsweek Solar Eclipse School Closures Announced in These States
- NBC 5 Chicago Schools across Illinois, Indiana announce closures for rare solar eclipse
- NASA 2024 Total Solar Eclipse
- Speedway Schools Calendadr & Events
- Facebook Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School
- archive.is Ennis Independent School District
- Astronomy How to see the 2024 eclipse: Path of totality, times, livestream, state-by-state guide
- Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators Jon Bales email
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Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.
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