Better safe than frozen

Michael Rivera | Opinion Editor
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When I hear the phrase “winter is coming” I have no fear because District 99 has made an effort to ensure my classmates do not have to endure ridiculously cold weather, as in the case of this year’s infamous “cold days,” on Jan. 7 and 8.

There are those who think that the cold days are a waste of time and that we, as students, need to have thicker skins. Unfortunately, Mother Nature doesn’t seem to care about toughness – frostbite works against the tough and the weak similarly. In negative 28 degrees Fahrenheit with wind-chill, as it was near on the cold days, frostbite can occur in less than 20 minutes, which is how long it takes some students to walk to school.

The school’s main priority should be avoiding liability by not making John Doe walk 16 minutes to school on Jan. 7, who now has numbness and large blisters. In reality, students are only missing two days of classroom time that will simply be tacked on to the end of the school year.

The discussion of whether or not cold days are necessary comes down to the dangers of cold weather. Fortunately, a lot of very intelligent doctors over at Mayo Clinic, a leading hospital in Rochester, Minn., have compiled the dangers of cold weather for us – one of them is the aforementioned frostbite and there are also other cold related health issues, such as unhealthy blood pressure increase.

Besides walking students, many students drive to school or take the bus. Any vehicle comes with the possible hazards of cold weather driving.

In sub-zero temperatures, batteries fail at a much higher rate, fluids thicken (oil, antifreeze, power steering, etc.), tire pressure decreases, and other minute things can happen. Even moisture in the busses’ air brakes can freeze, limiting the brakes’ effectiveness. Because a majority of our students drive or ride busses, the possibility of cars and busses failing in cold weather is a serious, widespread safety concern.

Cold weather is too dangerous to have students attempting to get to school safely, no matter what their method of getting to school is. The risks outweighs the reward of keeping our calendar pristine, and thus we must have cold days in extreme situations to preserve the health and well-being of our students.

Get layered not lazy

Katie Callaghan | Feature Editor
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Every winter kids wish for snow days, but in the past two years we have had a new type of day off: a cold day. However, students should be in school despite the cold conditions outside. In the winters of 2014 and 2015, DGN has had six cold days.

It makes sense that administration would worry about the safety of students traveling through snow, when the road conditions are too poor for students to get to school. It is not necessary to have days off because it is cold.

As high school students, we should be moving towards adulthood. Many students have lived in Downers Grove for their whole lives and know that once November comes it will get chilly.

With cold days, students are being told they aren’t mature enough to dress appropriately for the weather. We aren’t little kids anymore; we should be responsible and take care of ourselves.

There will always be people who don’t think it is cold and won’t get bundled up. By refusing to dress warmly, it’s their fault if something happens to them, not the school’s. With that, I think students can wait outside for 5-10 minutes and survive the “dreaded” two minute walk into school from their vehicle.

Since these times of exposure are short, the risk of frostbite is lowered. The risk is still relevant, but with short exposure and extra layers, students can prevent it.

In fact, many students have no problem driving to see their friends in the cold weather on their days off. I’m sure they would also have that same “difficulty” driving all the way to school.

There is always the chance of vehicles having problems in the severe cold. Although these problems are present, they can still occur during teen temperatures. If students are nervous about these problems, those vehicles should not be on the road during any cold weather, below zero or not.

But remember, it is only two extra days of taking finals while we should be on our summer break trying to get a tan.
Throw on a parka and toughen up on your way to school because the roads are clear and the weather is cold, but that’s what life is like in the Chicagoland area. Get used to it. Who knows, maybe next year we will have a “heat day.”