The School District of Philadelphia moved 57 schools to virtual learning on Wednesday, May 20, after days of continued high temperatures raised concerns about inadequate cooling in some buildings. The district also sent all early childhood centers at the affected locations online, while canceling in-person after-school activities and athletic programs for the day.

Deputy Superintendent of Operations Oz Hill said the district made the call “out of an abundance of caution, and in order to ensure the safety of our entire school community.” Families had already sent students home with Chromebooks on Monday, May 18, to prepare for the switch, a move that showed the district had been planning for the possibility that the heat would force classrooms out of service.

The district said its Inclement Weather Protocol was guiding the response as it monitored weather conditions and waited for a safe return to in-person learning. It said students at the affected schools would remain virtual until further notice, and that it would update families once a date for in-person classes had been determined.

For families needing help during the disruption, the district pointed them to the FitzPatrick Annex Building or Martin Luther King High School tech support centers for device repairs and other Chromebook issues, or to the district hotline. It also advised parents to check phila.gov for food or meal distribution sites and to call the Philly Hopeline at 1-833-PHL-HOPE for free counseling services. Teachers and families were also told to stay in touch through Class Dojo, Google Classroom or the Parent Portal.

The decision underscores how quickly extreme heat can push the district’s buildings and schedules past what they can safely manage. The district said it still had not determined when in-person learning would resume for the affected schools, and it promised to communicate that date through its standard channels once it was set.

What happens next depends on the weather and on whether the buildings can cool enough for classes to reopen safely. For now, the school district of philadelphia is treating the heat as a safety problem, not a short delay, and that means families should expect more updates before students return to classrooms.