Leicester, Massachusetts, 1,322 students in 4 schools

Leicester School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Leicester get?

About 61.1 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 2.3 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 4.9 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 2.6 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Leicester?

21.8 inches on March 13, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 2.3 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 96.1 inches.

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

Leicester averages 2.6 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 80 percent of the 291 Massachusetts districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Leicester snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Leicester 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 Leicester’s own big snow morning: 5.3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 2.3 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Leicester, measured against Leicester's own big snow morning of 5.3 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Leicester close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Leicester’s snow record

61.1inches of snow a winter

4.9school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

2.6with 4 in or more

5.3 ina big snow morning in Leicester: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

1.2school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 80% of the 291 Massachusetts districts with a station record.

1.6Nov

10.9Dec

17.8Jan

15.7Feb

10.9Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 21.8 in on March 13, 2018
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 96.1 in
6 in mornings 1.2 a winter
1 in mornings 8.9 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 2.3 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 Leicester

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Spencer-East Brookfield School DistrictSpencer	61.1 in	2.6
Auburn School DistrictAuburn	45.7 in	2.7
Worcester School DistrictWorcester	61.1 in	2.6
Millbury School DistrictMillbury	42.5 in	2.1
Wachusett School DistrictJefferson	61.1 in	2.6
Oxford School DistrictOxford	38.6 in	2.1

The schools

4 schools

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

High

Leicester High

Middle

Leicester Middle

Elementary

Leicester Elementary

Other schools

Leicester Integrated Preschool

Questions

Leicester snow day questions

How much snow does Leicester get?

What was the biggest snow day near Leicester?

Does Leicester get more snow days than other Massachusetts districts?

How does the Leicester 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.