Portland, Indiana, 2,987 students in 6 schools

Jay School Corporation Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Portland get?

About 10.7 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away, averaged over 8 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 1.1 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.8 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Jay?

5 inches on March 21, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away in 8 winters. The snowiest winter was 2025 to 2026, with 19.2 inches.

Q: Does Jay get more snow days than other Indiana districts?

Jay averages 0.8 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 88 percent of the 283 Indiana districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Jay snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Portland 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 Jay’s own big snow morning: 4 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 1.1 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Jay, measured against Jay's own big snow morning of 4 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Jay close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Jay’s snow record

10.7inches of snow a winter

1.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.8with 4 in or more

4 ina big snow morning in Jay: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

5school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 88% of the 283 Indiana districts with a station record.

0.5Nov

1.8Dec

3.6Jan

3.8Feb

0.8Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 5 in on March 21, 2018
Snowiest winter 2025 to 2026, 19.2 in
6 in mornings 0 a winter
1 in mornings 2.3 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 Indiana rule

How Indiana counts a lost day

Indiana requires at least 180 student instructional days a school year.

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

Next door

Districts near Jay

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
South Adams SchoolsBerne	17.4 in	0.6
Randolph Central School CorporationWinchester	15.1 in	0.5
Monroe Central School CorporationParker City	15.1 in	0.5
Blackford County SchoolsHartford City	23.4 in	0.6
Liberty-Perry Community School CorporationSelma	18.9 in	0.3
Delaware Community School CorporationMuncie	18.9 in	0.3

The schools

6 schools

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

High

Jay County Jr/Sr High School

Elementary

East Jay Elementary
East Elementary School
Bloomfield Elementary School, Bryant
Redkey Elementary School, Redkey
West Jay Elementary, Dunkirk

Questions

Jay snow day questions

How much snow does Portland get?

What was the biggest snow day near Jay?

Does Jay get more snow days than other Indiana districts?

How does the Jay snow day predictor work?

How does Indiana handle snow days?

More winter

More for Indiana 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.Indiana winter forecastThe season ahead for Indiana: 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.