Clay, Michigan, 1,348 students in 4 schools

Algonac Community School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Clay get?

About 21.9 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 2.1 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 3.1 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Algonac?

10 inches on February 16, 2021, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 2.1 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 48.1 inches.

Q: How does the Algonac snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Clay 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 Algonac’s own big snow morning: 4 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 2.1 miles away.

Q: How far ahead does the Algonac snow day predictor look?

Three school mornings, as far as the National Weather Service hourly forecast reaches. Weekends and breaks are skipped, so a Friday storm is read for Monday’s buses.

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

The next three school mornings

Will Algonac close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Algonac’s snow record

21.9inches of snow a winter

3.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1with 4 in or more

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

1.8school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

1.6Nov

3.5Dec

6.1Jan

8.8Feb

1.6Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 10 in on February 16, 2021
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 48.1 in
6 in mornings 0.3 a winter
1 in mornings 5.7 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 2.1 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 Michigan rule

How Michigan counts a lost day

Michigan requires at least 180 days and 1,098 hours of pupil instruction. The first 6 days (or the same hours) lost to conditions outside the district's control, such as severe storms, are counted as instruction; up to 3 more can be approved by the State Superintendent.

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

Next door

Districts near Algonac

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
East China School DistrictEast China	21.9 in	1
Anchor Bay School DistrictCasco	30.8 in	1.3
New Haven Community SchoolsNew Haven	30.8 in	1.3
L'Anse Creuse Public SchoolsClinton Township	28 in	0.7
Richmond Community SchoolsRichmond	40.6 in	1.6
Clintondale Community SchoolsClinton Township	28 in	0.7

The schools

4 schools

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

High

Algonac JuniorSenior High School
Algonac Alternative Education

Elementary

Algonquin Elementary School
Millside Elementary School

Questions

Algonac snow day questions

How much snow does Clay get?

What was the biggest snow day near Algonac?

How does the Algonac snow day predictor work?

How does Michigan handle snow days?

How far ahead does the Algonac snow day predictor look?

More winter

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