Snow, ice and freezing temperatures - Central Missouri is weathering a rough winter.
The weather has been rough on area schools as well. Districts have missed multiple days, sometimes in a row.
Jefferson City Public Schools had its third full snow day Thursday, while Blair Oaks R-2 Schools in Wardsville experienced its fourth.
JCPS initially was set to have its last day of school May 16, but snow make-up days have pushed that date off until May 22, as of Thursday. This could change if the area receives more snow and ice, JCPS Director of Communications Ryan Burns warned.
JCPS has snow makeup days scheduled for May 20-22. Other potential JCPS snow make-up days include May 23 and May 28.
If JCPS has a snow day on or before Jan. 4, the school district will use Presidents' Day, Feb. 18, as a weather make-up day, according to its website. If it does not have a snow day before Jan. 4, then school will not be in session on Presidents' Day.
District officials have not discussed what they will do if JCPS needs more than five days to make-up snow days, Burns said.
Blair Oaks' last day of school is now scheduled for May 17, Superintendent Jim Jones said. The district also has snow make-up days scheduled for Feb. 18, April 2 and March 28.
If Blair Oaks has more snow days, its next make-up days will be April 1, April 22 and May 20-22, according to the school district's website.
Over the last 15 years, Jones said, Blair Oaks has averaged three snow days a year.
"It's been unusual weather for sure, but it hasn't been an unusually high number of snow days," he said.
While the snow days have pushed off both local schools districts' last day of school, Burns said school administration wants to ensure the safety of its students.
"At the end of the day, we have to think of safety for our students and our buses," she said. "We can't run the risk of sending buses out when it's a below-freezing temperature and the potential for roads to be icy. It's a tough call, but we definitely take it seriously and appreciate our families for understanding when we have to make those decisions."
Helias Catholic High School will use its last built-in snow make-up day later this year due to Thursday's inclement weather, said Sandy Hentges, Helias director of communications and admissions. The school has had a few snow days this school year.
Helias' school administrators will discuss other potential make-up days at a future date, Hentges said. It is unlikely Helias would add days at the end of the school year, she added, since Helias' last day is May 17, the Friday before graduation.
Cole County R-1 Schools in Russellville had its third snow day Thursday. The school district already made up one of those days and has a scheduled make-up day set for April 18, Superintendent Perry Gorrell said.
When school is back in session, Gorrell said, the school's administrators will decide what's the best day to make-up Thursday's snow day.
Several local schools have had early dismissals or late starts due to weather this school year, but these do not count as snow days and do not require make-up days.
New Bloomfield R-3 used up its last of six planned-for days Thursday. The district's first two scheduled make-up days are March 25-26.
"Any more days will automatically be placed on the end of the year," New Bloomfield R-3 Superintendent Sarah Wisdom said. "We are still getting out mid-May."
Normally, the district doesn't use up planned snow days this rapidly, she said.
"We have had mild winters lately, so this is more than we have had for a few years," she said.
South Callaway R-2 is also out of snow days, with eight weather-related days off so far, past its six planned-for days.
"We've also had a couple of early releases and one late start," Superintendent Kevin Hillman said.
The South Callaway district introduced late starts this year for those mornings when an hour or two of sunlight is likely to clear the roads. It has worked well, Hillman said.
Upcoming planned weather make-up days for South Callaway include Feb. 18, March 18-19 and April 22. Additional days may be added at the end of the school year.
Hillman noted Missouri's policy on how school districts handle snow days will change in the next school year, putting more control into the hands of individual districts.
"It'll be more based on hours instead of days," he said. "We're still deciding what to do."