Traditional snow days or virtual learning: What will FCPS do this year?

By Colleen Kelleher
December 1, 2022 | 8:12 AM

Kids, get the sleds ready. The first five inclement weather days for Fairfax County Public Schools this school year will be traditional snow days. Virginia’s largest school system said weather procedures will stay the same as last year.

After the district uses those five days, future snow days may be unscheduled virtual learning days with live instruction. Fairfax County spans 400 square miles, and the school system tries to make decisions the night before a possible snow day, but that can’t always happen when conditions change. If conditions change overnight, the school superintendent usually makes a decision by 4:30 a.m. Watch the video to see how FCPS decides whether to close schools:

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Breaking the silence around suicide: A Virginia mother shares thoughts on prevention

By Kate Ryan
September 1, 2026 | 4:22 AM

September is Suicide Prevention Month, and Betsy Stephenson, an Alexandria, Virginia, resident and a mother who lost her son to suicide, wants people to talk about it. "By not talking about suicide, we are not going to make it go away. In fact, I think that we could inadvertently give it a little more power than it deserves," she told WTOP. One of the things that Stephenson wants families to know is that people who are struggling can appear to be doing well. "You can be very high-functioning as a depressed person or an anxious person," she said. "You can be connected socially. You can be doing well at school or work. You can be making plans, smiling, laughing, engaged, but still be struggling deeply, you know, cosmically, inside."

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