School officials say they didn't want children walking to bus stops or to school buildings in the extreme cold.
To avoid having its students walk to school or wait for the buses in frigid weather, the Phillipsburg School District decided to close its doors for today, Superintendent George Chando said.
Today's temperature is forecast for a high of only 7 degrees with winds expected to gust up to 33 mph, causing many area school districts to shut their doors for the day.
Chando closed the schools because Phillipsburg School District has several students who walk to their schools and others who "have to walk to their bus stops and wait for their buses to arrive." Chando called this morning's minus 1 temperature and minus 25 "real feel" temperature "severe."
"With the conditions we experienced this morning and with the forecast for very little improvement in temperatures during the day, I felt it warranted closing schools today," he said.
District officials will review the latest weather forecast and determine later today if a delayed opening or closing is necessary Wednesday, he said.
The Easton Area School District was also closed because of the extreme cold weather, according to Superintendent John Reinhart. The decision is made based on what other area districts are doing and past practices, he said.
"The extreme cold weather that was forecasted for today remains very unusual and historic in nature," he said. "It will be very cold tomorrow but not quite as cold as today."
He and other staff spent a lot of time Monday afternoon deciding whether to close schools, he said. Easton officials were debating the same thing this afternoon and will open schools two hours late Wednesday, Reinhart said.
The delay will give the district's bus drivers time to "make sure the buses are started and running" and to help avert any late pickups "so no kids are waiting at bus stops," he said.