Lansing, Michigan, 2,723 students in 6 schools

Waverly Community Schools Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Lansing get?

About 44 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 3.5 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 4.4 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.7 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Waverly?

13.3 inches on February 2, 2022, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 3.5 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2021 to 2022, with 58.1 inches.

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

Waverly averages 1.7 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 56 percent of the 515 Michigan districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Waverly snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Lansing 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 Waverly’s own big snow morning: 3.6 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 3.5 miles away.

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

The next three school mornings

Will Waverly close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Waverly’s snow record

44inches of snow a winter

4.4school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1.7with 4 in or more

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

2.8school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 56% of the 515 Michigan districts with a station record.

4.8Nov

9.1Dec

12.3Jan

13.1Feb

3.9Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 13.3 in on February 2, 2022
Snowiest winter 2021 to 2022, 58.1 in
6 in mornings 0.2 a winter
1 in mornings 9.4 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 3.5 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 Waverly

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Lansing Public School DistrictLansing	38.2 in	0.6
Holt Public SchoolsHolt	38.2 in	0.6
Grand Ledge Public SchoolsGrand Ledge	44 in	1.7
DeWitt Public SchoolsDewitt	44 in	1.7
East Lansing School DistrictEast Lansing	38.2 in	0.6
Okemos Public SchoolsOkemos	45.6 in	1.2

The schools

6 schools

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

High

Waverly Senior High School

Middle

Waverly Middle School
East Intermediate School

Elementary

Winans Elementary School
Elmwood Elementary School

Other schools

Meryl S Colt Early Childhood Education Center

Questions

Waverly snow day questions

How much snow does Lansing get?

What was the biggest snow day near Waverly?

Does Waverly get more snow days than other Michigan districts?

How does the Waverly 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.