Lawrence School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How does Lawrence announce a snow day?

By local TV, radio, phone call and the district website, and on the district’s own closings page.

Q: How many snow days does Lawrence have built in?

5 for the 2026 to 2027 school year, listed on the calendar as “built-in snow days”.

Q: When is the last day of school for Lawrence?

June 23, 2027, on the district’s 2026 to 2027 calendar.

Q: How much snow does Lawrence get?

About 37.5 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station under a mile away, averaged over 7 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 4.3 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.9 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Lawrence?

21 inches on March 14, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station under a mile away in 7 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 69.6 inches.

Q: How does the Lawrence snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Lawrence 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 Lawrence’s own big snow morning: 9 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station under a mile away.

The next three school mornings

Will Lawrence close tomorrow?

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

The Lawrence playbook

How Lawrence calls a snow day

How families hear

By local TV, radio, phone call and the district website.

“local media outlets (TV and radio), Connect Ed message to your home, and the homepage of the Lawrence Public Schools website.”

Weather Delays and Early Dismissals Policies - Lawrence Public Schools

5 built in snow days

On the 2026 to 2027 calendar, listed as “built-in snow days”.

“Last Day of School - (includes 5 built-in snow days)”

Source

The 2026 to 2027 calendar

First day August 24, 2026
Winter break Dec 21 to Jan 1
February break Feb 15 to Feb 19
Last day June 23, 2027

District calendar

The board policy

“If the Superintendent implements either of these policies, staff and students will be notified by:”

Board policy

Read from Lawrence’s own pages on October 8, 2026; the district site is lawrence.k12.ma.us.

Ten winters of school mornings

Lawrence’s snow record

37.5inches of snow a winter

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

1.9with 4 in or more

9 ina big snow morning in Lawrence: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

0.9school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

1Nov

7.6Dec

9Jan

11Feb

8.2Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 21 in on March 14, 2018
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 69.6 in
6 in mornings 1.7 a winter
1 in mornings 6.1 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station under a 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 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 Lawrence

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings	Built in days
North Andover School DistrictNorth Andover	37.5 in	1.9
Methuen School DistrictMethuen	37.5 in	1.9	5
Andover School DistrictAndover	45.7 in	2.4	5
Haverhill School DistrictHaverhill	43.4 in	1.7	5
Tewksbury School DistrictTewksbury	44.2 in	2.1
Lowell School DistrictLowell	44.8 in	2.5	5

The schools

26 schools

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

High

Lawrence High School
High School Learning Center
RISE Academy

Middle

Parthum Middle School
Arlington Middle School
Frost Middle School
Guilmette Middle School
Spark Academy
Alexander B Bruce
Oliver Middle School
Leonard Middle School

Elementary

Edward F. Parthum
South Lawrence East Elementary School
Arlington Elementary
Robert Frost
Emily G Wetherbee
Francis M Leahy
Gerard A. Guilmette
Oliver Elementary School
James F Hennessey
John K Tarbox

Other schools

John Breen School
Lawlor Early Childhood Center
Lawrence Family Public Academy
Rollins Early Childhood Center
School for Exceptional Studies

Questions

Lawrence snow day questions

How does Lawrence announce a snow day?

How many snow days does Lawrence have built in?

When is the last day of school for Lawrence?

How much snow does Lawrence get?

What was the biggest snow day near Lawrence?

How does the Lawrence 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.