Schools in rural Burns, Ore., were closed last week out of concerns for student safety as armed protesters occupied a nearby federal wildlife refuge.
Harney County School District #3 enrolls fewer than 1,000 students in its three schools. But Burns is only about 30 miles from the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, where armed anti-government activists took control of at least one government building in protest of federal control of public land.
Several high-profile and unusual school closures ended 2015, but the Burns district’s decision to close is unusual because it was made relatively early, more than a week in advance.
