Benton, Kentucky, 4,394 students in 12 schools

Marshall County School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Benton get?

About 6.2 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 21 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 0.8 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.4 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Marshall?

7 inches on January 12, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 21 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 13.4 inches.

Q: Does Marshall get more snow days than other Kentucky districts?

Marshall averages 0.4 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 70 percent of the 127 Kentucky districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Marshall snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Benton 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 Marshall’s own big snow morning: 4 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 21 miles away.

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

The next three school mornings

Will Marshall close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Marshall’s snow record

6.2inches of snow a winter

0.8school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.4with 4 in or more

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

0.3school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 70% of the 127 Kentucky districts with a station record.

0.3Nov

0.6Dec

3.6Jan

1.4Feb

0.2Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 7 in on January 12, 2018
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 13.4 in
6 in mornings 0.1 a winter
1 in mornings 1.4 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 21 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 Marshall

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
McCracken County School DistrictPaducah	7.1 in	0.3
Calloway County School DistrictMurray	6.2 in	0.4
Graves County School DistrictMayfield	7.1 in	0.3
Christian County School DistrictHopkinsville	6.3 in	0.1
Hopkins County School DistrictMadisonville	4.7 in	0
Muhlenberg County School DistrictPowderly	4.7 in	0

The schools

12 schools

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

High

Marshall County High School
MC Academy
Marshall County Technical Center

Middle

North Marshall Middle School, Calvert City
South Marshall Middle

Elementary

Benton Elementary School
Central Elementary School
Sharpe Elementary School
Calvert City Elementary School, Calvert City
South Marshall Elementary School
Jonathan Elementary School

Other schools

Purchase Youth Village

Questions

Marshall snow day questions

How much snow does Benton get?

What was the biggest snow day near Marshall?

Does Marshall get more snow days than other Kentucky districts?

How does the Marshall snow day predictor work?

How does Kentucky handle snow days?

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.