Northwest ISD officials approved a missed school day waiver request after five days of school and facility closures during Winter Storm Fern.
The request was passed at a regular board meeting Feb. 9.
The gist
The district is seeking permission from the Texas Education Agency to waive one school day due to inclement weather closures, Executive Director of Communications Anthony Tosie said. The district closed its facilities Jan. 26-30 because of icy roads after Winter Storm Fern brought freezing rain and sleet to the area.
NISD previously accounted for up to four bad-weather days when it approved its calendar for the 2025-26 school year, Tosie said. If the state approves the waiver, the district does not need to add a make up day to the school year.
“We are hopeful that TEA will recognize the unavoidable nature of the missed instructional days and determine in favor of waiving the missed day,” Melissa DeSimone, the district’s executive director of research, assessment and accountability, said in an email.
Waivers can be requested after any emergency related to weather, health safety or other unanticipated issues related to inclement weather, according to district documents.
The TEA typically makes a decision on whether to approve the waiver within a week, DeSimone said.
One more thing
The board also approved the payment for employees instructed not to report to work during the closure. While the district’s payroll budget isn’t expected to see a change for the 2025-26 school year, the wages of hourly workers per day is estimated at $875,000 total, according to district documents.
