Students in Monroe and Jamesburg enjoy a snow day
Chinenye Okparanta
Students in Monroe and Jamesburg found different ways to fill the day of Dec. 9 after learning that school was closed because of snow.
Brian Diaz, a seventh-grader at Immaculate Conception found at 6:30 a.m. that schools in the district were closed.
Brian said his mother, who works as a bus driver for the Monroe School District, told him that he didn’t have to get up for school.
"It’s fun so far because I don’t have to go to school," he said.
Brian spent the early part of the morning shoveling snow from the driveway, but said that he had plans to go sledding at Thompson Park in the afternoon.
Tricia Hetzell, a ninth-grader at Monroe Township High School, also spent a portion of the day shoveling and planned to spend another portion shopping.
Monroe Schools Superintendent Ralph Ferrie said the decision to designate the day a snow day was made early in the morning. The district makes the decision about canceling school based on the safety of students and staff, Dr. Ferrie said.
The melting snow that covered the roadways made it potentially dangerous for school buses.
But the snow didn’t keep students from making the most of their time.
Instead of waking up at 6 p.m. as she regularly does, Tricia woke up at 8 a.m. to shovel the snow from the walkway and then go shopping with her mother, who said it was "lovely" to have her daughter home for the day.
According to Dr. Ferrie, Monroe students won’t have to make up the school day because the district already has three snow days built into the calendar.
"Usually we would have to make (it) up at the end of the school year, but the school already edited out the days so we won’t have to make it up," Tricia said.

