Beloit, Ohio, 1,753 students in 5 schools

West Branch Local School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Beloit get?

About 24.7 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 9.1 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 West Branch?

13 inches on January 17, 2022, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 9.1 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2021 to 2022, with 43.7 inches.

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

West Branch 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 West Branch snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Beloit 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 West Branch’s own big snow morning: 3 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 9.1 miles away.

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

The next three school mornings

Will West Branch close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

West Branch’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 West Branch: 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 9.1 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 West Branch

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Salem City School DistrictSalem	24.7 in	0.8
Marlington Local School DistrictAlliance	24.7 in	0.8
South Range Local School DistrictCanfield	24.7 in	0.8
Minerva Local School DistrictMinerva	38 in	1
Southeast Local School DistrictRavenna	24.7 in	0.8
Canfield Local School DistrictCanfield	16.3 in	0.5

The schools

5 schools

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

High

West Branch High School
West Branch Digital Academy

Middle

West Branch Middle School

Other schools

West Branch Early Learning Center, Salem
West Branch Preschool, Alliance

Questions

West Branch snow day questions

How much snow does Beloit get?

What was the biggest snow day near West Branch?

Does West Branch get more snow days than other Ohio districts?

How does the West Branch 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.