Waconia, Minnesota, 4,000 students in 9 schools

Waconia Public School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Waconia get?

About 58.7 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 5.5 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 5.1 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 2.3 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Waconia?

14.5 inches on April 15, 2018, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 5.5 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2022 to 2023, with 106.6 inches.

Q: Does Waconia get more snow days than other Minnesota districts?

Waconia averages 2.3 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 73 percent of the 322 Minnesota districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Waconia snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Waconia 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 Waconia’s own big snow morning: 4.3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 5.5 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Waconia, measured against Waconia's own big snow morning of 4.3 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Waconia close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Waconia’s snow record

58.7inches of snow a winter

5.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

2.3with 4 in or more

4.3 ina big snow morning in Waconia: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 73% of the 322 Minnesota districts with a station record.

5.4Nov

12.6Dec

10.1Jan

12.1Feb

9.6Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 14.5 in on April 15, 2018
Snowiest winter 2022 to 2023, 106.6 in
6 in mornings 1.3 a winter
1 in mornings 8.8 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 5.5 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 Minnesota rule

How Minnesota counts a lost day

Minnesota requires at least 165 days for grades 1 to 11, plus 935 hours for grades 1 to 6 and 1,020 hours for grades 7 to 12.

The Minnesota rules in the agency’s own words, and every Minnesota district

Next door

Districts near Waconia

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Watertown-Mayer Public School DistrictWatertown	47.8 in	2.4
Eastern Carver County Public SchoolsChaska	55.5 in	2.5
Westonka Public School DistrictMinnetrista	47.4 in	2.1
Shakopee Public School DistrictShakopee	55.5 in	2.5
Delano Public School DistrictDelano	30.9 in	2.5
Orono Public School DistrictLong Lake	42.1 in	2

The schools

9 schools

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

High

Waconia High School
Waconia Learning Center
Transitions 110
Waconia Learning Center SS/AS

Middle

Waconia Middle School

Elementary

Southview Elementary
Bayview Elementary
Laketown Elementary

Other schools

Early Childhood Special Education

Questions

Waconia snow day questions

How much snow does Waconia get?

What was the biggest snow day near Waconia?

Does Waconia get more snow days than other Minnesota districts?

How does the Waconia snow day predictor work?

How does Minnesota handle snow days?

More winter

More for Minnesota 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.Minnesota winter forecastThe season ahead for Minnesota: 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.