Rochester, New York, 3,467 students in 4 schools

Brighton Central School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Rochester get?

About 87.9 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 5.7 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 10.1 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 2.8 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Brighton?

16.2 inches on March 14, 2017, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 5.7 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2017 to 2018, with 120.5 inches.

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

Brighton averages 2.8 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 58 percent of the 676 New York districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Brighton snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Rochester 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 Brighton’s own big snow morning: 3.5 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 5.7 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Brighton, measured against Brighton's own big snow morning of 3.5 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Brighton close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Brighton’s snow record

87.9inches of snow a winter

10.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

2.8with 4 in or more

3.5 ina big snow morning in Brighton: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

1.2school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 58% of the 676 New York districts with a station record.

7.3Nov

18.8Dec

26.2Jan

20Feb

13.4Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 16.2 in on March 14, 2017
Snowiest winter 2017 to 2018, 120.5 in
6 in mornings 1.3 a winter
1 in mornings 17.7 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 5.7 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 Brighton

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Rochester City School DistrictRochester	87.9 in	2.8
Penfield Central School DistrictRochester	78.3 in	3.2
East Irondequoit Central School DistrictRochester	87.9 in	2.8
Rush-Henrietta Central School DistrictHenrietta	62.7 in	1.1
Pittsford Central School DistrictPittsford	62.7 in	1.1
Fairport Central School DistrictFairport	62.7 in	1.1

The schools

4 schools

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

High

Brighton High School

Middle

Twelve Corners Middle School

Elementary

Council Rock Primary School
French Road Elementary School

Questions

Brighton snow day questions

How much snow does Rochester get?

What was the biggest snow day near Brighton?

Does Brighton get more snow days than other New York districts?

How does the Brighton 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.