Fort Dodge, Iowa, 3,611 students in 7 schools

Fort Dodge Community School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Fort Dodge get?

About 38.3 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 1 mile away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 4.3 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.7 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Fort Dodge?

11 inches on February 9, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 1 mile away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 66.7 inches.

Q: Does Fort Dodge get more snow days than other Iowa districts?

Fort Dodge averages 1.7 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 87 percent of the 323 Iowa districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Fort Dodge snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Fort Dodge 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 Fort Dodge’s own big snow morning: 5.3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 1 mile away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Fort Dodge, measured against Fort Dodge's own big snow morning of 5.3 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Fort Dodge close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Fort Dodge’s snow record

38.3inches of snow a winter

4.3school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1.7with 4 in or more

5.3 ina big snow morning in Fort Dodge: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 87% of the 323 Iowa districts with a station record.

2.9Nov

6.5Dec

9.8Jan

10.6Feb

6.2Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 11 in on February 9, 2018
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 66.7 in
6 in mornings 0.8 a winter
1 in mornings 6.4 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 1 mile 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 Iowa rule

How Iowa counts a lost day

Iowa requires at least 180 days or 1,080 hours of instruction, as the board chooses. When a board extends the calendar to make up weather closures, it may excuse seniors who have already met graduation requirements.

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

Next door

Districts near Fort Dodge

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Ames Community School DistrictAmes	28.3 in	1.3
Dallas Center-Grimes Community School DistrictGrimes	30.8 in	1.4
Ankeny Community School DistrictAnkeny	29.6 in	1
Johnston Community School DistrictJohnston	30.8 in	1.4
Urbandale Community School DistrictUrbandale	27.8 in	0.9
Waukee Community School DistrictWaukee	27.8 in	0.9

The schools

7 schools

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

High

Fort Dodge High School

Middle

Fort Dodge Middle School

Elementary

Duncombe Elementary School
Butler Elementary School
Cooper Elementary School
Feelhaver Elementary School

Other schools

Early Childhood Center

Questions

Fort Dodge snow day questions

How much snow does Fort Dodge get?

What was the biggest snow day near Fort Dodge?

Does Fort Dodge get more snow days than other Iowa districts?

How does the Fort Dodge snow day predictor work?

How does Iowa handle snow days?

More winter

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