Sanford, Michigan, 1,362 students in 3 schools

Meridian Public Schools Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Sanford get?

About 37.7 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 8.9 miles away, averaged over 7 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 3.6 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.3 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Meridian?

8 inches on January 29, 2019, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 8.9 miles away in 7 winters. The snowiest winter was 2018 to 2019, with 46.7 inches.

Q: How does the Meridian snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Sanford 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 Meridian’s own big snow morning: 3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 8.9 miles away.

Q: How far ahead does the Meridian 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 Meridian, measured against Meridian's own big snow morning of 3 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Meridian close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Meridian’s snow record

37.7inches of snow a winter

3.6school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1.3with 4 in or more

3 ina big snow morning in Meridian: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

4.4Nov

5.7Dec

12.3Jan

11.6Feb

2.8Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 8 in on January 29, 2019
Snowiest winter 2018 to 2019, 46.7 in
6 in mornings 0.3 a winter
1 in mornings 7.9 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 8.9 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 Meridian

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Midland Public SchoolsMidland	30.5 in	0.9
Bullock Creek School DistrictMidland	30.5 in	0.9
Freeland Community School DistrictFreeland	30.9 in	0.7
Gladwin Community SchoolsGladwin	44.8 in	2.2
Shepherd Public School DistrictShepherd	38.4 in	1.4
Mount Pleasant City School DistrictMount Pleasant	38.4 in	1.4

The schools

3 schools

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

High

Meridian Early College High School

Middle

Meridian Junior High School

Elementary

Meridian Elementary School

Questions

Meridian snow day questions

How much snow does Sanford get?

What was the biggest snow day near Meridian?

How does the Meridian snow day predictor work?

How does Michigan handle snow days?

How far ahead does the Meridian 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.