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Are some US schools closing for the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024? [1]

['Tom Kertscher', 'Wisconsin Watch', 'More Tom Kertscher', 'Fact Checker']

Date: 2024-04-08 15:51:39+00:00

Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

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.



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: Calendar & 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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[1] Url: https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/04/eclipse-solar-schools-states-sun-moon-closing-nasa-fact-brief/

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