Ballston Spa, New York, 3,881 students in 6 schools

Ballston Spa Central School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Ballston Spa get?

About 56.9 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 2.5 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 7.3 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 3.3 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Ballston Spa?

15 inches on March 15, 2017, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 2.5 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 82.8 inches.

Q: Does Ballston Spa get more snow days than other New York districts?

Ballston Spa averages 3.3 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 69 percent of the 676 New York districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Ballston Spa snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Ballston Spa 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 Ballston Spa’s own big snow morning: 5.8 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 2.5 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Ballston Spa, measured against Ballston Spa's own big snow morning of 5.8 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Ballston Spa close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Ballston Spa’s snow record

56.9inches of snow a winter

7.3school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

3.3with 4 in or more

5.8 ina big snow morning in Ballston Spa: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 69% of the 676 New York districts with a station record.

3.8Nov

11.1Dec

14.4Jan

14.8Feb

11.1Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 15 in on March 15, 2017
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 82.8 in
6 in mornings 1.5 a winter
1 in mornings 10.1 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 2.5 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 New York rule

How New York counts a lost day

New York requires 180 days of session plus 900 hours a year for kindergarten to grade 6 and 990 hours for grades 7 to 12. The Commissioner can excuse up to 5 days closed for extraordinary weather, but only if the district cannot make them up by using all its scheduled vacation days before the June Regents exams.

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

Next door

Districts near Ballston Spa

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Saratoga Springs City School DistrictSaratoga Springs	67.5 in	3.1
Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central School DistrictBurnt Hills	44.6 in	2.6
Shenendehowa Central School DistrictClifton Park	42.2 in	2.4
Mechanicville City School DistrictMechanicville	42.2 in	2.4
Stillwater Central School DistrictStillwater	56.9 in	3.3
Scotia-Glenville Central School DistrictScotia	44.6 in	2.6

The schools

6 schools

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

High

Ballston Spa Senior High School

Middle

Ballston Spa Middle School

Elementary

Wood Road Elementary School
Gordon Creek Elementary School
Milton Terrace Elementary School
Malta Avenue Elementary School

Questions

Ballston Spa snow day questions

How much snow does Ballston Spa get?

What was the biggest snow day near Ballston Spa?

Does Ballston Spa get more snow days than other New York districts?

How does the Ballston Spa snow day predictor work?

How does New York handle snow days?

More winter

More for New York 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.New York winter forecastThe season ahead for New York: 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.