Let's call the whole week off!
That's what some districts did late Thursday, abandoning any attempt at reopening on Friday. It is all because of the unusual confluence of the weather and resources that have allowed urban districts to clear streets and rural schools to struggle.
"Some of (our) schools had two feet of snow or more while some schools are melted and ready to go," said Melissa Laramie, spokesperson for the Kent School District, which canceled class on Friday.
It means with a mid-winter break already scheduled next week, students will be out of class for more than two weeks.
Laramie says the massive district, which encompasses 72 square miles and 42 schools, has had a variety of issues to clean up from, including the snow, fallen branches, and wind damage. She says starting back up is a complicated decision involving buses, afternoon activities, and sports. She's heard the suggestion about why not open the district up by individual school.
"With 42 schools you could end up having 42 different schedules," she said, noting a typical family with three kids would hypothetically have to deal with three schedules and the headaches that would bring.
Kent says it has had help from the city's police department and public works crews, plus roughly 200 district maintenance employees working to restore class.
The state's sixth largest district, Edmonds, has had similar issues. That district spans multiple municipalities and has found that many side streets have been overwhelmed by snow. In Lynnwood, streets near one Edmonds district elementary school on Thursday were still nearly impassable, sidewalks full of snow.
"We were supposed to have a party today, cause it's Valentine's Day," lamented 3rd grader Paxton Chadwick.
Instead, he was home shoveling the sidewalk.
City of Lynnwood spokesperson Julie Moore says her small city of roughly 40,000 only has four snow plows, and it's public works department already logged long hours earlier in the week. Translation: their budget is stressed.
"Crews are now focused on those side streets," she said.
However, Moore added, "We don't have the manpower to address the sidewalks."
Districts, for the most part, say sidewalk safety is key to restoring class, with so many kids walking to neighborhood schools in dark hours. That's why many districts have decided in inclement weather to move to two-hour delayed starts.
Others are just throwing in the towel, and hoping the rest of the month is sunnier.