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Boston Public Schools closed Friday due to extreme cold weather

BOSTON — Boston Public Schools will be closed Friday as the city braces for a dangerously cold air mass that is expected to blast the region with brutal wind chills.

It’s not a snow day Friday for Boston Public School students; instead, just a very cold one. No class means many students will spend their day at the Boys and Girls Club in Dorchester. One grandmother who takes care of her grandchild says the school district’s decision is a “Catch 22.”

“It’s in the best interest of the kids because it is going to be so cold, but it is really inconvenient for the working parent, the working grandparent,” says Leonna More.

More than 54,000 BPS kids won’t be in class. It’s a decision the district says it didn’t take lightly.

A statement reads in part: “Due to the low temperatures and strong wind gusts, there is an increased risk of hypothermia and frostbite. we acknowledge closing schools is a challenge to many of our families and encourage families in need to take advantage of warming centers on Friday and Saturday.”

“It’s tough but they won’t be out in the cold,” says Moore.

Not all school districts will be closed in our area due to the frigid weather. For that reason, one parent made an executive decision for her own child.

“It is going to be too cold. I work from home so she will be home with me,” says parent, Rachel Boyd.

For those BPS kids who can’t be at home or the Boys and Girls Club, Leonna says the school district needs to consider those families.

“What about the parent that can’t take the day off? What about them, what if they don’t have any time? So, they are at risk of losing their job?” says Moore.

BPS says it makes these decisions with the best interest of its students in mind.

According to a BPS spokesperson, schools will also offer free meals to students, the first time the school district has ever done so for a cold weather event. Meals will be available at the following 13 sites

  • Thomas A. Edison K8 School, 60 Glenmont Rd, Brighton, MA 02135
  • James F. Condon School, 200 D St, South Boston, MA 02127
  • Mario Umana Academy, 312 Border St, East Boston, MA 02128
  • Boston Latin School, 78 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA 02115
  • Margarita Muniz Academy, 20 Child St, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
  • Orchard Gardens K-8 School, 906 Albany St, Roxbury, MA 02119
  • Lila Frederick Pilot Middle School, 270 Columbia Rd, Dorchester, MA 02121
  • Richard J. Murphy K-8 School, 1 Worrell St, Dorchester, MA 02122
  • Community Academy of Science and Health, 11 Charles St, Dorchester, MA 02122
  • Mildred Ave K-8 School, 5 Mildred Ave, Mattapan, MA 02126
  • Boston Community Leadership Academy, 655 Metropolitan Avenue, Hyde Park, MA 02136
  • Dr. William H. Ohrenberger School, 175 W Boundary Rd, West Roxbury, MA 02132
  • Josiah Quincy Elementary School, 885 Washington St, Boston, MA 02111

Families are encouraged to use the city’s litany of warming centers in operation this weekend.

All extracurricular activities on Friday and Saturday will be canceled.

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