While suburban districts closed or called delays, Philly schools remained open. And many are mad about it.

While a host of suburban and archdiocesan schools closed or had delayed openings as the first real snowfall in years complicated morning commutes Tuesday, the Philadelphia School District stood pat, opening schools on a regular schedule.

That decision frustrated — and, some staff said, endangered — many, resulting in spotty student and teacher attendance in Philadelphia schools, and pushback from the district unions that represent teachers and principals.

“This was a bad call,” said Robin Cooper, president of Teamsters Local 502, the Commonwealth Association of School Administrators, the Philadelphia School District union for administrators. “I think we have to re-think what school looks like, especially post-pandemic, when things like this happen.”

Jerry Jordan, president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, was watching the Eagles game Monday night when he received a text from Jeremy Grant-Skinner, a district deputy superintendent, saying that Philadelphia schools would not close or open late Tuesday.

Jordan was alarmed, given that a number of suburban districts had already called delays. Many district staff live outside the city, and would be facing potentially treacherous commutes. When Jordan looked again at the forecast and saw that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia had decided to keep its buildings closed and pivot to a virtual instruction day, he was even more perplexed.

Many Philadelphia parents, especially those with inflexible jobs, rely on schools for child care and to keep their children safe during the day; Jordan said that he is very aware of that. But street conditions and the ability of employees to make it to work must also factor into the decision.

“Streets were already very, very slippery, and they were predicting the conditions might be icy, and I thought the district needed to rethink its position,” Jordan said. He texted Grant-Skinner back, asking him to reconsider. Cooper also lodged her concerns with the district.

Neither ever received a response.

Monique Braxton, district spokesperson, said in a statement that “student and staff well-being and safety is of the utmost importance. To the greatest extent possible, the School District of Philadelphia strives to keep schools open for in-person learning to accelerate student achievement.”

Late arrivals were being excused, Braxton said.

In schools across the city, late arrivals were common, but so were student and employee absences.

One teacher at a K-8 school in the Northeast said that more than 20 staff members had called out; of the teacher’s 26 students, just seven showed up, but this teacher had 12 altogether, because the teacher absorbed the five students who showed up from the class of a colleague who wasn’t able to make it into work.

The teacher was incredulous that courts were closed but that schools were open. It was determined to be too dangerous for people accused of crimes to be out, “but it’s fine for the children of Philadelphia?” asked the teacher, who did not want to be identified for fear of reprisal.

“My school wasn’t shoveled properly, and the streets all around the school are a sheet of ice,” the teacher said.

At another district school, an elementary in South Philadelphia, a teacher reported small classes and freezing classroom conditions, with buildings shut for three days because of the Martin Luther King holiday.

“It’s less than 50 degrees in a majority of our classrooms, and I have eight kids in each class so far,” said the teacher, who also asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution. The teacher worried about students making their way home on icy sidewalks. “This district is criminal.”

The principal of one comprehensive high school said that only about 35% of students showed up. Teacher attendance was better, with about three in four teachers reporting to work, but dozens of teachers were late, with administrators and counselors pulled to cover classes.

“It’s a wasted day of learning,” said the principal, who also asked not to be identified for fear of reprisal.

Cooper, the principals’ union president, was fielding a steady stream of text messages from her members: dozens of staff out, bus routes canceled, students pulled into a gym or auditorium with very little instruction occurring.

“Attendance is horrific. It’s all about the children, but you need the staff to be able to get there,” said Cooper.

Cooper shared a sampling of her members’ messages: “This is unacceptable. Not only are we at risk getting to work, we’re now at risk because over 20 people called out. Who’s supposed to be with the kids?” one said. “Due to all the call outs, there should have been a plan for [central office] staff to be assigned at schools if instruction is as important as they say!”

A photo making the rounds on social media showed the parking lot of the district headquarters at 440 N. Broad Street plowed clean but with few cars. School-based staff were frustrated that apparently central office employees were permitted to work remotely.

Braxton said the picture seems to show a side where school board members and those who do not work from headquarters on a daily basis park, and “doesn’t correctly reflect the employees or staff who report to 440 N. Broad daily.” By mid-afternoon, more cars were parked in that lot, according to those with firsthand knowledge.

Braxton said that central office employees “were expected to work from their regular work location today. This includes some staff who work remotely on one or two days per week. As with school staff, there is a higher number of employees taking leave today compared to an average day.”

One central office staffer — who also asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal, — said that “440 is a ghost town today. We were not told that it was OK to work from home, at least not officially, but it would seem a lot of people are.”