Pawcatuck, Connecticut, 1,762 students in 4 schools

Stonington School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Pawcatuck get?

About 14.6 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away, averaged over 7 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 1.7 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.9 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Stonington?

13 inches on January 30, 2022, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away in 7 winters. The snowiest winter was 2020 to 2021, with 28.4 inches.

Q: How does the Stonington snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Pawcatuck through the night and the 5 to 8 am bus run, adds winter alerts and the Winter Storm Severity Index, and measures the snow against Stonington’s own big snow morning: 4.6 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away.

Q: Can Connecticut schools hold a remote day instead?

A remote learning day counts as an actual school session if it meets the Commissioner's remote learning standards; the statute sets no cap.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Stonington, measured against Stonington's own big snow morning of 4.6 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Stonington close tomorrow?

Reading the National Weather Service forecast for the overnight and the bus hours in Pawcatuck.

Ten winters of school mornings

Stonington’s snow record

14.6inches of snow a winter

1.7school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.9with 4 in or more

4.6 ina big snow morning in Stonington: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

0Nov

3.1Dec

4.2Jan

6.1Feb

1.1Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 13 in on January 30, 2022
Snowiest winter 2020 to 2021, 28.4 in
6 in mornings 0.1 a winter
1 in mornings 2.9 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away. Mornings are the 7 am snow reading on a weekday from December 1 through March 31, over the ten winters from 2016 to 2017 through 2025 to 2026, from NOAA GHCN Daily.

The Connecticut rule

How Connecticut counts a lost day

Connecticut requires at least 180 days and 900 hours of actual school work, counting no more than 7 hours a day.

The Connecticut rules in the agency’s own words, and every Connecticut district

Next door

Districts near Stonington

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Groton School DistrictMystic	17 in	0.7
Ledyard School DistrictLedyard	17 in	0.7
New London School DistrictNew London	27.3 in	1.5
Waterford School DistrictWaterford	27.3 in	1.5
Griswold School DistrictGriswold	25 in	1.4
Montville School DistrictOakdale	24.4 in	1.3

The schools

4 schools

Every school in Stonington follows the district’s call: one closing covers them all.

High

Stonington High School

Middle

Stonington Middle School, Mystic

Elementary

Deans Mill School, Stonington
West Vine Street School

Questions

Stonington snow day questions

How much snow does Pawcatuck get?

What was the biggest snow day near Stonington?

How does the Stonington snow day predictor work?

How does Connecticut handle snow days?

Can Connecticut schools hold a remote day instead?

More winter

More for Connecticut snow days

Snow day predictorClosing and delay odds for any ZIP, with the snowiest districts in the country.Snow depth mapHow much snow is on the ground right now, measured, across the country.First snow datesWhen the first measurable snow usually lands where you live.Frozen pipesThe nights cold enough to freeze a pipe, and what to do before one.Snow plow trackerWhere the plows are during a storm, city by city.Connecticut winter forecastThe season ahead for Connecticut: snowfall, cold and the first snow.

A residential street under deep snow on a bright blue morning, cars parked along the curb buried into smooth white mounds, one set of tire tracks down the middle — The morning after a big one: cars buried to the mirrors and one set of tracks down the middle. A street like this is a closing, no debate. Photo, Fairfax, Virginia, January 2016: Jarek Tuszyński, CC BY 4.0

The odds are a forecast read, and the superintendent makes the call: the district’s own announcement is the one to follow.