Salem, Ohio, 1,940 students in 5 schools

Salem City School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Salem get?

About 24.7 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 13 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 2.7 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.8 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Salem?

13 inches on January 17, 2022, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 13 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2021 to 2022, with 43.7 inches.

Q: Does Salem get more snow days than other Ohio districts?

Salem averages 0.8 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 61 percent of the 582 Ohio districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Salem snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Salem 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 Salem’s own big snow morning: 3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 13 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Salem, measured against Salem's own big snow morning of 3 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Salem close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Salem’s snow record

24.7inches of snow a winter

2.7school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.8with 4 in or more

3 ina big snow morning in Salem: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 61% of the 582 Ohio districts with a station record.

1.5Nov

4.5Dec

10.5Jan

4.8Feb

2.8Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 13 in on January 17, 2022
Snowiest winter 2021 to 2022, 43.7 in
6 in mornings 0.3 a winter
1 in mornings 6.6 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 13 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 Salem

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
South Range Local School DistrictCanfield	24.7 in	0.8
West Branch Local School DistrictBeloit	24.7 in	0.8
Columbiana Exempted Village School DistrictColumbiana	24.7 in	0.8
Canfield Local School DistrictCanfield	16.3 in	0.5
Crestview Local School DistrictColumbiana	20.4 in	1.4
Boardman Local School DistrictYoungstown	16.3 in	0.5

The schools

5 schools

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

High

Salem High School

Middle

Southeast Elementary School
Salem Junior High School

Elementary

Buckeye Elementary School
Reilly Elementary School

Questions

Salem snow day questions

How much snow does Salem get?

What was the biggest snow day near Salem?

Does Salem get more snow days than other Ohio districts?

How does the Salem snow day predictor work?

How does Ohio handle snow days?

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.