Lebanon, Kentucky, 3,129 students in 8 schools

Marion County School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Lebanon get?

About 11.7 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 13 miles away, averaged over 9 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 1.6 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.2 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Marion?

7 inches on March 12, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 13 miles away in 9 winters. The snowiest winter was 2021 to 2022, with 23.1 inches.

Q: How does the Marion snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Lebanon 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 Marion’s own big snow morning: 3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 13 miles away.

Q: Can Kentucky schools hold a remote day instead?

A district with a Commissioner approved NTI plan may count up to the equivalent of 10 student attendance days when it closes for health or safety reasons.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Marion, measured against Marion's own big snow morning of 3 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Marion close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Marion’s snow record

11.7inches of snow a winter

1.6school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.2with 4 in or more

3 ina big snow morning in Marion: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

0.5Nov

1.4Dec

5.4Jan

2.4Feb

2Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 7 in on March 12, 2018
Snowiest winter 2021 to 2022, 23.1 in
6 in mornings 0.2 a winter
1 in mornings 2.8 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 13 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 Kentucky rule

How Kentucky counts a lost day

Kentucky requires at least 1,062 instructional hours on at least 170 student attendance days. After an emergency a board may amend its calendar and lengthen or shorten the remaining days by 30 minutes or more, as long as the year still meets the requirement.

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

Next door

Districts near Marion

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings	Built in days
Nelson County School DistrictBardstown	8.7 in	0.6
Lincoln County School DistrictStanford	11.7 in	0.2
Spencer County School DistrictTaylorsville	12.3 in	0.3
Anderson County School DistrictLawrenceburg	12.2 in	0.3
Hardin County School DistrictElizabethtown	7.9 in	0.1	5
Bullitt County School DistrictShepherdsville	8.7 in	0.6	All made up

The schools

8 schools

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

High

Marion County High School

Middle

Marion County Middle School

Elementary

Glasscock Elementary School
West Marion Elementary School, Loretto
Lebanon Elementary School
Calvary Elementary School

Other schools

Lebanon Middle School
Hugh C. Spalding Academy

Questions

Marion snow day questions

How much snow does Lebanon get?

What was the biggest snow day near Marion?

How does the Marion snow day predictor work?

How does Kentucky handle snow days?

Can Kentucky schools hold a remote day instead?

More winter

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