CHICAGO — Chicago Public Schools students will be back in class Wednesday, the district announced Tuesday.
School was canceled both Monday and Tuesday due to cold weather, with temperatures dipping to as low as 11 below zero Tuesday morning.
"We are confident that we have made decisions this week in the best interest of student safety, and we look forward to returning to the classroom and delivering a 21st century education that will put students on a path for success in college, career and life," CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett said.
At an unrelated news conference Tuesday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said he supported the CPS decision to close.
“It’s a public health issue. It’s the safety of our children,” the mayor said. “If you need a place, obviously, to drop your child, you know the Park District has programming. YMCA does. CPS made a decision, like other school districts in the area, based on the safety of the child."
"I support the decision," he added, about having 400,000 CPS students stay home from school.
CPS students have had four days of classes canceled in January due to extremely cold conditions, including Jan. 6 and Jan. 7, which also were marked by subzero temperatures.
The district is adding two school days to the calendar to make up for the first weather-related closures: March 28 and June 11. Makeup dates haven't been scheduled for this week's closures.
On Monday, 1st Ward Ald. Joe Moreno said he received complaints from working parents and proposed that the school district offer "skeletal care" to children, just to give them a place to go.
The temperature on Wednesday is expected to climb to 22 degrees.
