LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — The latest snow prompted some area schools to cancel Wednesday, and the days this winter are adding up.

Officials with several schools say they are at or near the point where they’ll have to make up the time.

The state allows schools to cancel six days each year before the time has to be made up. And for school districts that have cancelled more than six days, the superintendents have some options for how they’ll go about it. Eaton Rapids Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Bill DeFrance said he’ll wait until after spring break to decide.

“If we have two or more snow days to make up, we’ll have school the second week of June,” DeFrance said. “Right now, we end the first week of June.”

Right now, Eaton Rapids is only two hours over the state limit. If that holds, DeFrance said the district can extend days that are not full days, or add time to the remaining school days. But given Eaton Rapids has many rural roads, DeFrance said that’s unlikely.

“The likelihood is we’ll have one or more days where we’ll have rough sledding on the back roads,” he said.

DeFrance said Eaton Rapids schools will work with Mason and Leslie schools to figure out how to move forward, given the districts serve similar areas. And he said while adding days is an option, it’s not something he wants to do.

“When we start to go into what people had planned for vacation, I’m sure we’re gonna get a little kickback,” DeFrance said.

But safety always comes first.

“So if we have a day that happens to be foggy, happens to be a day where the temperature is right around freezing, we’re gonna either have a delay in the start of school or take the day off because the worst that happens is we go a day or two extra in June,” DeFrance said.

6 News spoke with several area schools, and many have a snow day left, but others will have to make up the lost time. Of the schools we spoke to:

  • Bath Area Schools have used seven days. Officials say they are evaluating how to make up the time.
  • East Lansing Schools have used five and a half days.
  • Fowler schools have one snow day remaining.
  • Fulton schools have cancelled seven days. They are submitting an application to the state for a “day of forgiveness” so the district does not have to make up days at the end of the year.
  • Haslett schools have used five and a half days.
  • Lansing schools have one snow day remaining.
  • Pewamo-Westphalia schools have one snow day remaining.
  • Portland schools have one snow day remaining.
  • Vestaburg schools have cancelled nine days this school year.