Skip to content

Friday, Apr. 5, 2024

Are schools around the US closing for the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024?


yes

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.

See a full discussion of this at Wisconsin Watch

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

About fact briefs

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.

See all fact briefs

Wisconsin Watch, the news arm of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, increases the quality and quantity of investigative reporting in Wisconsin, while training current and future investigative journalists. Its work fosters an informed citizenry and strengthens democracy.

Learn More

Be a Friend of facts

Help us fund more great fact briefs like this one.