By Megan Cohen
This winter season has brought a generous number of snow days to Loudoun County — so many that midterms were cancelled. The phrases “Winter Weather Advisory” and “Winter Storm Watch/Warning” have existed as a beacon of hope for students, often promising that the county’s public information officer Wayde Byard will be leaving a message the following morning.
However, the past few weeks have proven the weather forecasts to be far from accurate. Whether it be weather.com, a smartphone app, or the basic weather channel, predictions haven’t been following through, particularly one forecast that promised five inches of snow but resulted in not even a dusting.
As it turns out, these false claims have started to affect students. Because all signs point to no school, homework has been left incomplete. Students assume there will be no school, so work has not been getting done. In one classroom, following an inaccurate weather forecast, only three students had done their math homework.
“Sometimes [not doing homework] works out, because we’ll occasionally not have school, but when it doesn’t get cancelled, I end up doing my homework in the library,” said sophomore Elizabeth Jochems.
Other students haven’t been so lucky. “When it doesn’t snow, it’s horrible,” said freshman Nathan Monk. “I don’t use my agenda, so by then, I’ll have forgotten what the homework is. So I don’t do it.”
While Monk and Jochems certainly aren’t the only students coming unprepared, others have ignored the weather forecasts and continued to work as usual. “I always do my homework, even when it calls for snow,” said Anam Rana, a sophomore. “But I still get so mad when it doesn’t snow.”
Of course, students aren’t always disappointed, with Leesburg having gotten plenty of snow the week of Valentine’s Day, resulting in a five-day weekend.
If the past is any indication, even when the forecasts call for a 100% chance of snow, it may be wise to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. After all, Wayde seems to call when you least expect it.
