Columbus, Ohio, 3,151 students in 5 schools

Hamilton Local School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Columbus get?

About 19.5 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 10.6 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 1.9 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.5 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Hamilton Local School District?

11.9 inches on January 25, 2026, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 10.6 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2025 to 2026, with 33.9 inches.

Q: How does the Hamilton Local School District snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Columbus 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 Hamilton Local School District’s own big snow morning: 2.5 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 10.6 miles away.

Q: Can Ohio schools hold a remote day instead?

A school can make up the hours of up to three closed days online, including for hazardous weather, if its board adopted a plan by August 1; using it is optional.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Hamilton Local School District, measured against Hamilton Local School District's own big snow morning of 2.5 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Hamilton Local School District close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Hamilton Local School District’s snow record

19.5inches of snow a winter

1.9school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.5with 4 in or more

2.5 ina big snow morning in Hamilton Local School District: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

1.6school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

1Nov

4.4Dec

6.9Jan

5.3Feb

1.4Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 11.9 in on January 25, 2026
Snowiest winter 2025 to 2026, 33.9 in
6 in mornings 0 a winter
1 in mornings 3.3 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 10.6 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 Ohio rule

How Ohio counts a lost day

Ohio requires hours, not days: 910 hours for full day kindergarten through grade 6, 1,001 hours for grades 7 to 12, 455 for half day kindergarten. Only hours that drop a school below the state minimum must be made up, by extending the school year.

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

Next door

Districts near Hamilton Local School District

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings	Built in days
South-Western City School DistrictGrove City	19.6 in	0.6	6
Groveport Madison Local School DistrictGroveport	19.5 in	0.5
Columbus City School DistrictColumbus	19.6 in	0.6
Bexley City School DistrictBexley	19.5 in	0.5
Whitehall City School DistrictWhitehall	19.5 in	0.5
Grandview Heights City School DistrictColumbus	19.6 in	0.6

The schools

5 schools

Every school in Hamilton Local School District follows the district’s call: one closing covers them all.

High

Hamilton Township High School

Middle

Hamilton Intermediate School
Hamilton Middle School

Elementary

Hamilton Elementary School

Other schools

Hamilton Local Preschool

Questions

Hamilton Local School District snow day questions

How much snow does Columbus get?

What was the biggest snow day near Hamilton Local School District?

How does the Hamilton Local School District snow day predictor work?

How does Ohio handle snow days?

Can Ohio schools hold a remote day instead?

More winter

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