Lima, Ohio, 2,275 students in 4 schools

Shawnee Local School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Lima get?

About 15.1 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 2.9 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 2.1 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 0.4 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Shawnee?

12.3 inches on February 16, 2021, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 2.9 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2020 to 2021, with 31.7 inches.

Q: How does the Shawnee snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Lima 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 Shawnee’s own big snow morning: 3.1 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 2.9 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 Shawnee, measured against Shawnee's own big snow morning of 3.1 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Shawnee close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Shawnee’s snow record

15.1inches of snow a winter

2.1school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

0.4with 4 in or more

3.1 ina big snow morning in Shawnee: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

2.7school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

1Nov

2.2Dec

4.6Jan

6.2Feb

0.8Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 12.3 in on February 16, 2021
Snowiest winter 2020 to 2021, 31.7 in
6 in mornings 0.2 a winter
1 in mornings 3.4 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 2.9 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 Shawnee

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Lima City School DistrictLima	15.1 in	0.4
Elida Local School DistrictElida	15.1 in	0.4
Wapakoneta City School DistrictWapakoneta	15.1 in	0.4
Bath Local School DistrictLima	23.6 in	1
Spencerville Local School DistrictSpencerville	15.1 in	0.4
Allen East Local School DistrictHarrod	23.6 in	1

The schools

4 schools

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

High

Shawnee High School

Middle

Shawnee Middle School

Elementary

Elmwood Elementary School
Maplewood Elementary School

Questions

Shawnee snow day questions

How much snow does Lima get?

What was the biggest snow day near Shawnee?

How does the Shawnee 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.