Winter storm update: Columbus area schools decide whether to stay closed Thursday

After all Columbus area schools were closed Wednesday in the wake of the overnight winter storm, here is a list of which ones will reopen and which ones will remain closed Thursday:

At 12:14 p.m. Wednesday, the Harris County School District announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 12:19 p.m., Lee County Schools announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 1:26 p.m., the Russell County School District announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 1:34 p.m., Phenix City Schools announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 1:55 p.m., the Chattahoochee County School District announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 2:01 p.m., the Troup County School System announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 2:25 p.m., the Muscogee County School District announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 2:36 p.m., Columbus Technical College announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 2:53 p.m., St. Anne-Pacelli Catholic School announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 3:18 p.m., Brookstone School announced it will remain closed Thursday.

At 4:33 p.m., Columbus State University announced it will remain closed Thursday. “CSU’s extracurricular activities scheduled after 5 p.m. on Thursday may go on as scheduled,” the announcement says. “The ribbon cutting and grand opening for CSU's Bo Bartlett Center will take place at the center at 5 p.m. The CSU basketball games have been rescheduled to Monday night.”

At 5:23 p.m., Enrichment Services Program announced all of its centers will remain closed Thursday.

At 5:27 p.m., Chattahoochee Valley Community College announced it will remain closed Thursday and will resume normal operations Friday.

Here is MCSD’s email to parents and guardians:

“Muscogee County Public Schools and administrative offices will remain closed Thursday, January 18. No students or employees should report to any District sites or schools tomorrow. School-related activities scheduled for Thursday, January 18 are also cancelled. All schools and school-related activities will resume during regular hours Friday, January 19.”

Some school officials in other districts explained their rationale in emails to the Ledger-Enquirer.

Harris County School District chief information officer Jeff Branham: “We have consulted with the Harris County Sheriff’s department, who has reported that we have large areas of highways that are icy and will not thaw until tomorrow afternoon. Due to the large square mileage of our county and varying road conditions, we are remaining closed for the safety and welfare of our students.”

Phenix City Schools superintendent Randy Wilkes: “Precip on the roads and bridges are expected to freeze overnight. Many school sidewalks remain treacherous. It is in the best interest of all to remain closed.”

ChattCo superintendent David McCurry: “After a visual inspection of current road conditions and the expected refreezing of wet areas overnight, the Chattahoochee County School System feels it's in the best interest of safety to not run school buses tomorrow morning. Chattahoochee County Schools will be closed on Thursday, January 18.”

Click on this story throughout the day as more announcements are made.

This story was originally published January 17, 2018 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Winter storm update: Columbus area schools decide whether to stay closed Thursday."