Why NJ won’t let schools do remote learning for snow — or even broken pipe disasters

🚨Burst pipe shuts down Red Bank Regional High School for three days

🚨Classes could not go virtual for three days per state law

🚨Superintendents would like flexibility to call a virtual day

RED BANK — A burst water pipe that has closed a Monmouth County high school for three days serves as an example of why districts cannot easily go virtual for classes, especially on a snow day.

Red Bank Regional High School was closed for a third day on Wednesday as a result of a burst water pipe that damaged a “significant number of classrooms and other spaces," according to superintendent Louis Moore. Industrial drying equip/ment, air movers, and dehumidifiers used to remediate the damage and make repairs cause too much noise and put student and staff safety at risk.

The district had no choice but to keep students home.  Under New Jersey law, schools must be in session 180 days to continue receiving state aid, and remote learning days do not count toward that number. The only exception to the law is a declared state of emergency or public health crisis that requires a district to close for three consecutive days.

The school will switch to remote learning on Thursday and Friday.

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State denies virtual learning requests for elections, snowstorms

It's also the reason districts don't go virtual during a snowstorm or for special events. The Wayne school district's request to go virtual during election day for the 11th Congressional District primary on Feb. 5 and the general election on April 16 was turned down by the state Department of Education. As a result, school will be closed both days and burn two of the four days set aside for snow days.

Toms River schools Superintendent Mike Citta said that while a virtual day can never replace in-person learning, having that flexibility helps with continuity in education. Citta faced his own challenge in the days after the last snowstorm and was forced to cancel classes.

"Something I've thought would be a feasible solution would be to allow school districts to seek approval from their county superintendent to provide a virtual day based on whatever circumstances it might be facing," Citta said. "Rather than miss days of instruction while waiting for these unique and unfortunate situations to reach that three-day threshold, an approval from the county superintendent would have provided some flexibility for those affected schools, students, and families."

The state allowed remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic when Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order in 2020 that waived the requirement for the 2020-21 academic year. It expired in May 2021 and full in-classroom instruction resumed for the 2021-22 academic year.

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