Dalton, Massachusetts, 1,561 students in 5 schools

Central Berkshire School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Dalton get?

About 72.5 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 6.7 miles away, averaged over 7 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 7 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 3.4 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Central Berkshire?

17.4 inches on February 2, 2021, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 6.7 miles away in 7 winters. The snowiest winter was 2020 to 2021, with 91.9 inches.

Q: Does Central Berkshire get more snow days than other Massachusetts districts?

Central Berkshire averages 3.4 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 94 percent of the 291 Massachusetts districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Central Berkshire snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Dalton 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 Central Berkshire’s own big snow morning: 5 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 6.7 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Central Berkshire, measured against Central Berkshire's own big snow morning of 5 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Central Berkshire close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Central Berkshire’s snow record

72.5inches of snow a winter

7school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

3.4with 4 in or more

5 ina big snow morning in Central Berkshire: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 94% of the 291 Massachusetts districts with a station record.

3.8Nov

18.4Dec

20.7Jan

16.1Feb

10Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 17.4 in on February 2, 2021
Snowiest winter 2020 to 2021, 91.9 in
6 in mornings 1.6 a winter
1 in mornings 12.6 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 6.7 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 Massachusetts rule

How Massachusetts counts a lost day

Massachusetts requires a 185 day calendar, at least 180 days actually held, and 900 hours for elementary or 990 hours for secondary students. Every day lost through March 31 is made up with full rescheduled days; after March 31, days are made up until 180 or the scheduled 185th day, whichever comes first.

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

Next door

Districts near Central Berkshire

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Pittsfield School DistrictPittsfield	53.5 in	2.8
Mount Greylock School DistrictWilliamstown	72.5 in	3.4
Berkshire Hills School DistrictStockbridge	53.5 in	2.8
North Adams School DistrictNorth Adams	72.5 in	3.4
Easthampton School DistrictEasthampton	53.4 in	3.1
Northampton School DistrictNorthampton	34.2 in	2.1

The schools

5 schools

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

High

Wahconah Regional High

Middle

Nessacus Regional Middle School

Elementary

Craneville
Kittredge, Hinsdale
Becket Washington School, Becket

Questions

Central Berkshire snow day questions

How much snow does Dalton get?

What was the biggest snow day near Central Berkshire?

Does Central Berkshire get more snow days than other Massachusetts districts?

How does the Central Berkshire snow day predictor work?

How does Massachusetts handle snow days?

More winter

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