Even before the grand jury decision on Officer Darren Wilson's fate was announced late Monday evening, schools in and around Ferguson, Mo., were scheduled to be closed on Tuesday, November 25. Riots that occurred throughout Monday night left many on edge in the communities.

The St. Louis Post Dispatch provided updated details about the closings on its website this morning.

The four school districts in Ferguson — Hazelwood, Ferguson-Florissant, Jennings and Riverview Gardens — called off class for Tuesday, as did Normandy and Clayton schools. St. Louis Public Schools, which has an elementary school near where demonstrations in the Shaw neighborhood, also cancelled classes, as did several city charter schools.

On Monday night, the Ritenour School District said it would be open but could change that plan. It did so on Tuesday morning, posting a note on its website that it would close "to ensure the safety of students and staff ... in light of civil  unrest in the region."

The article also stated that at different points throughout the school year, teachers themselves have stayed home even when schools were not closed "out of concern for their safety."

Writer S. Mitra Kalita of Quartz called closed schools an "injustice."

Why fret over big-box stores staying open but not our schools? The National Guard arrived in Ferguson last night presumably to keep calm in the streets. Would it not send an even more powerful message for those officers to guarantee the safe passage of thousands of children to school?

The Ferguson-Florissan District web site does not currently list information about either the closed schools or plans moving forward.

Read the St. Louis Post Dispatch story  and the Quartz story. Share your comments below.

Corrie Kerr, Education World Editor