Watervliet, Michigan, 1,436 students in 5 schools

Watervliet School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Watervliet get?

About 46.3 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 10 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 6.1 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.8 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Watervliet?

10 inches on February 2, 2022, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 10 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 92.7 inches.

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

Watervliet averages 1.8 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 58 percent of the 515 Michigan districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Watervliet snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Watervliet 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 Watervliet’s own big snow morning: 4 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 10 miles away.

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

The next three school mornings

Will Watervliet close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Watervliet’s snow record

46.3inches of snow a winter

6.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1.8with 4 in or more

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

1.7school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 58% of the 515 Michigan districts with a station record.

4.4Nov

10.2Dec

20.5Jan

7.6Feb

2.3Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 10 in on February 2, 2022
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 92.7 in
6 in mornings 0.9 a winter
1 in mornings 9.4 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 10 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 Watervliet

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Coloma Community SchoolsColoma	46.3 in	1.8
Hartford Public School DistrictHartford	46.3 in	1.8
Benton Harbor Area SchoolsBenton Harbor	46.3 in	1.8
South Haven Public SchoolsSouth Haven	46.3 in	1.8
St. Joseph Public SchoolsSaint Joseph	46.3 in	1.8
Dowagiac Union SchoolsDowagiac	39.5 in	1.6

The schools

5 schools

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

High

Watervliet Senior High School
WAY Watervliet High School

Middle

Watervliet Middle School

Elementary

South Elementary School
North Elementary School

Questions

Watervliet snow day questions

How much snow does Watervliet get?

What was the biggest snow day near Watervliet?

Does Watervliet get more snow days than other Michigan districts?

How does the Watervliet 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.