Benzonia, Michigan, 1,183 students in 6 schools

Benzie County Central School Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Benzonia get?

About 99.4 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 6 miles away, averaged over 9 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 12.1 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 Benzie?

9.1 inches on January 23, 2025, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 6 miles away in 9 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 135.9 inches.

Q: Does Benzie get more snow days than other Michigan districts?

Benzie averages 3.4 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 87 percent of the 515 Michigan districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Benzie snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Benzonia 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 Benzie’s own big snow morning: 3.6 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 6 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Benzie, measured against Benzie's own big snow morning of 3.6 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Benzie close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Benzie’s snow record

99.4inches of snow a winter

12.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

3.4with 4 in or more

3.6 ina big snow morning in Benzie: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 87% of the 515 Michigan districts with a station record.

7Nov

24.5Dec

32.3Jan

19.7Feb

12.7Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 9.1 in on January 23, 2025
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 135.9 in
6 in mornings 1.1 a winter
1 in mornings 20 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 6 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 Benzie

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings	Built in days
Traverse City Area Public SchoolsTraverse City	111.1 in	3.6	5
Kingsley Area SchoolsKingsley	84.3 in	2.2
Manistee Area SchoolsManistee	118.4 in	5
Elk Rapids SchoolsElk Rapids	111.1 in	3.6
Cadillac Area Public SchoolsCadillac	70 in	2.7
Kalkaska Public SchoolsKalkaska	129.2 in	5.5

The schools

6 schools

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

High

Benzie Central Sr High School
Benzie Academy

Middle

Benzie Central Middle School

Elementary

Homestead Hills Elementary School
Lake Ann Elementary School, Interlochen
Betsie Valley School, Thompsonville

Questions

Benzie snow day questions

How much snow does Benzonia get?

What was the biggest snow day near Benzie?

Does Benzie get more snow days than other Michigan districts?

How does the Benzie snow day predictor work?

How does Michigan handle snow days?

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.