Mason City, Iowa, 3,509 students in 9 schools

Mason City Community School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Mason City get?

About 35 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 1.8 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 3.6 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.2 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Mason City?

11.5 inches on January 25, 2017, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 1.8 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2018 to 2019, with 58.1 inches.

Q: Does Mason City get more snow days than other Iowa districts?

Mason City averages 1.2 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 53 percent of the 323 Iowa districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Mason City snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Mason City 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 Mason City’s own big snow morning: 3.8 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 1.8 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Mason City, measured against Mason City's own big snow morning of 3.8 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Mason City close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Mason City’s snow record

35inches of snow a winter

3.6school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1.2with 4 in or more

3.8 ina big snow morning in Mason City: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

14.2school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 53% of the 323 Iowa districts with a station record.

2.4Nov

6.1Dec

9.4Jan

7.9Feb

5.8Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 11.5 in on January 25, 2017
Snowiest winter 2018 to 2019, 58.1 in
6 in mornings 0.3 a winter
1 in mornings 6 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 1.8 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 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 Mason City

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Cedar Falls Community School DistrictCedar Falls	35.6 in	1.5
Waterloo Community School DistrictWaterloo	34.5 in	1.4
Fort Dodge Community School DistrictFort Dodge	38.3 in	1.7
Marshalltown Community School DistrictMarshalltown	27.2 in	0.8
Ames Community School DistrictAmes	28.3 in	1.3
Ankeny Community School DistrictAnkeny	29.6 in	1

The schools

9 schools

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

High

Mason City High School
Alternative School
Mason City Virtual Academy

Middle

Lincoln Intermediate
John Adams Middle School

Elementary

Roosevelt Elementary School
Harding Elementary School
Hoover Elementary School
Jefferson Elementary School

Questions

Mason City snow day questions

How much snow does Mason City get?

What was the biggest snow day near Mason City?

Does Mason City get more snow days than other Iowa districts?

How does the Mason City 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.