It was a dream come true for the kids in Philadelphia when the Eagles soared into a Super Bowl victory over the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday. Now they are given a second wish: school holidays to celebrate with champions at the city's Super Bowl parade.
The Philadelphia school district said it would close all schools on Friday, freeing nearly 200,000 students and joining what is expected to become a powerful crowd of 1 million people on the city's streets. Nearly 20,000 school staff will also be taking leave.
“We look forward to celebrating the Eagles' victory as a community,” the district announced that it may be an official way to say “go to the birds!”
The parade begins at 11am at Lincoln Financial Field and heads north past the city hall and ends at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Parents are facing a decision on whether to take their kids to a parade where they can be shouldered by strangers in the temperatures in the hopes of hovering in their 30s. Schools in Philadelphia will also close on President's Day Monday, giving students a four-day weekend, so others may opt to take improvised leave.
Social media was bustling with opinions and recommendations about the parade, from optimists booking Airbnbs near the stadium to careful parents who advise others to sit and leave their children at home.
Philadelphia public safety officials have issued several precautions for parents who were planning to take their children to the parade. Make sure they wear bright colors. Take photos of them before you leave. Then, write their phone numbers on a bracelet, wrist, or paper in your pocket, just in case the child and parent are separated.
Other educational institutions around Philadelphia have jumped into nearby school districts such as Temple University and the Gloucester City School District in South Jersey and the Ridley School District in Delaware County. The Philadelphia School Archdiocese, which oversees the city and its suburban Catholic schools, has also announced that high schools, parishes and local primary schools will be closed.
Transportation officials said that due to road closures, train services are limited. City officials also said government agencies, city daytime centres and courts will be closed.
The timing of the parade falling on Valentine's Day has been complained by the owners of restaurants and flower shops in the city. Philadelphia Mayor Sherrell Parker tried to calm these concerns at a press conference Tuesday.
“I want everyone in our restaurant community to know that we're being prepared,” she told reporters. “There's nothing to prevent our restaurant reservations that night. We're doing well before you perform at dinner. So please don't dare touch those reservations.”
The Philadelphia school district was closed in 2018 to celebrate the Eagles' first Super Bowl victory over New England patriots.
Schools were closed during last year's Super Bowl parade in Kansas City, Missouri, after Kansas City beat the San Francisco 49ers. The shooting at the parade killed one person and injured about 20 people, including nine children.
