Westlake, Ohio, 3,280 students in 4 schools

Westlake City School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Westlake get?

About 41.9 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 2.4 miles away, averaged over 7 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 4.4 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 1.7 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Westlake?

12 inches on December 25, 2020, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 2.4 miles away in 7 winters. The snowiest winter was 2020 to 2021, with 69.1 inches.

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

Westlake averages 1.7 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 89 percent of the 582 Ohio districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Westlake snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Westlake 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 Westlake’s own big snow morning: 3.4 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 2.4 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Westlake, measured against Westlake's own big snow morning of 3.4 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Westlake close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Westlake’s snow record

41.9inches of snow a winter

4.4school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

1.7with 4 in or more

3.4 ina big snow morning in Westlake: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 89% of the 582 Ohio districts with a station record.

2.2Nov

9.4Dec

12.5Jan

11.3Feb

4Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 12 in on December 25, 2020
Snowiest winter 2020 to 2021, 69.1 in
6 in mornings 0.9 a winter
1 in mornings 8.1 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 2.4 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 Westlake

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Bay Village City School DistrictBay Village	41.9 in	1.7
Rocky River City School DistrictRocky River	39.8 in	0.7
Fairview Park City School DistrictFairview Park	39.8 in	0.7
North Olmsted City School DistrictNorth Olmsted	41.9 in	1.7
Lakewood City School DistrictLakewood	47.4 in	2
Olmsted Falls City School DistrictOlmsted Falls	39.8 in	0.7

The schools

4 schools

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

High

Westlake High School

Middle

Dover Intermediate School
Lee Burneson Middle School

Elementary

Westlake Elementary School

Questions

Westlake snow day questions

How much snow does Westlake get?

What was the biggest snow day near Westlake?

Does Westlake get more snow days than other Ohio districts?

How does the Westlake 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.