Winter Weather

It’s important to remember that each winter storm brings unique challenges, which district officials consider when deciding whether to close or delay school. Behind each decision is a delicate balance of educational and safety priorities, first-hand observations, and closely monitored weather forecasts.  

Instructional time is crucial to ensuring our students’ academic success, but the safety of our students is always the district’s number one priority. We hope this information will help our community learn more about our decision-making process surrounding winter weather delays and closures.

The decision to close or delay school due to hazardous weather conditions is always made for the safety of our staff, students, and families.

The first consideration is the road conditions within Mesquite ISD's attendance zone and surrounding communities. Remember that approximately half of MISD’s employees commute from various parts of the Metroplex using freeways, overpasses, and bridges that often pose dangerous driving conditions.

A second consideration is the forecast for the day. We consider the forecast's confidence level and predicted timing, whether precipitation is expected to arrive during the school day, and whether icy conditions are not expected to be alleviated during the day. Delayed openings are considered when early morning conditions are expected to remedy any remaining hazardous road conditions. 

Third, we check our buildings to ensure that heating units are working correctly and to check for burst pipes. Our maintenance staff also assesses icy conditions on sidewalks and parking lots around our campuses and facilities.

The decision to close or delay school start times will be made as soon as possible and no later than 5 a.m. on the day in question. 

In the event a decision is made to open or close schools, that information will be communicated as soon as possible to parents/guardians and staff in several ways: 

• MISD’s notification system via email, text, and phone message (click here to learn more about Skylert notifications)
• Popup alert on mesquiteisd.org and campus webpages
• Posts on the district's official Facebook and X/Twitter 
• AYO Family Feed

Mesquite ISD does not send out emails or other forms of communication if there are no changes to the regular school day or after-school activities.