Jackson, Michigan, 3,467 students in 5 schools

Northwest School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Jackson get?

About 33.8 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 16 miles away, averaged over 9 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 3.9 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.4 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Northwest?

7 inches on January 29, 2019, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 16 miles away in 9 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 53.7 inches.

Q: How does the Northwest snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Jackson 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 Northwest’s own big snow morning: 2.9 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 16 miles away.

Q: How far ahead does the Northwest 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 Northwest, measured against Northwest's own big snow morning of 2.9 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Northwest close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Northwest’s snow record

33.8inches of snow a winter

3.9school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.4with 4 in or more

2.9 ina big snow morning in Northwest: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

3.1school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

4.4Nov

5.8Dec

10.5Jan

9.1Feb

3.8Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 7 in on January 29, 2019
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 53.7 in
6 in mornings 0.3 a winter
1 in mornings 8.3 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 16 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 Northwest

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Jackson Public SchoolsJackson	28.3 in	1.1
Western School DistrictParma	33.8 in	0.4
Leslie Public SchoolsLeslie	33.8 in	0.4
Michigan Center School DistrictMichigan Center	28.3 in	1.1
Grass Lake Community SchoolsGrass Lake	32.1 in	1
Eaton Rapids Public SchoolsEaton Rapids	33.8 in	0.4

The schools

5 schools

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

High

Northwest High School
Northwest Connect

Middle

Northwest Kidder Middle School

Elementary

Northwest Early Elementary School
Northwest Elementary School

Questions

Northwest snow day questions

How much snow does Jackson get?

What was the biggest snow day near Northwest?

How does the Northwest snow day predictor work?

How does Michigan handle snow days?

How far ahead does the Northwest 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.