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Charles Town, West Virginia, 8,245 students in 16 schools

Jefferson County School District Snow Day Predictor

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Jefferson, measured against Jefferson's own big snow morning of 4.4 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Jefferson close tomorrow?

Reading the National Weather Service forecast for the overnight and the bus hours in Charles Town.
The Jefferson playbook

How Jefferson calls a snow day

When the call comes

The night before whenever possible, otherwise after early morning road checks.

“Whenever possible, decisions about schedule changes are made the night before. If that’s not an option, our crews go out early in the morning to check road conditions.”
Source

How families hear

By the district website, the district app, text message, phone call, social media, radio and local TV.

“Weather-related delays and closings will be announced through the following channels: JCS Alerts Website App Notification Text Robocall JCS Social Media: Facebook Instagram Radio : 95.9 WICL ... Television : DC News Now - WDVM TV10”
School Delays and Closures | Jefferson County Schools

5 built in snow days

On the 2026 to 2027 calendar, listed as “inclement weather days”.

“The first five (5) inclement weather days do not have to be made up.”
Source

Remote learning days

Jefferson has remote learning days in its winter plan, up to 5 a year.

“Instructions for the second five (5) inclement weather days can take place through remote learning.”
Source

Making up a lost day

After 10 snow days, makeup days may be added later in the calendar, possibly from spring break or other days off.

“If more than 10 snow days are used, makeup days may be added later in the calendar, possibly affecting Spring Break or other scheduled days off to ensure the required 180 instructional days are met.”
Source

The 2026 to 2027 calendar

  • First day August 17, 2026
  • Winter break Dec 21 to Jan 4
  • Last day May 27, 2027
District calendar

Read from Jefferson’s own pages on October 8, 2026; the district site is jcswv.org.

Ten winters of school mornings

Jefferson’s snow record

13.1inches of snow a winter
1.9school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more
0.8with 4 in or more
4.4 ina big snow morning in Jefferson: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

More 4 inch school mornings than 68% of the 53 West Virginia districts with a station record.

0.7Nov
1.4Dec
5.8Jan
3.7Feb
1.5Mar
Average snowfall by month, inches
  • Biggest day 8.1 in on December 17, 2020
  • Snowiest winter 2020 to 2021, 29.6 in
  • 6 in mornings 0.2 a winter
  • 1 in mornings 2.8 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 10.9 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.

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The West Virginia rule

How West Virginia counts a lost day

West Virginia requires at least 900 instructional hours a year, with each county setting the length of its days. The State Superintendent may lower the minimum in a county under a federal disaster declaration or a Governor's emergency declaration tied to the lost hours.

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

Next door

Districts near Jefferson

DistrictSnow a winter4 in mornings
Berkeley County School DistrictMartinsburg12.2 in0.6
Morgan County School DistrictBerkeley Springs14.6 in1.4
Hampshire County School DistrictRomney24.7 in1.3
Hardy County School DistrictMoorefield24.7 in1.3
Mineral County School DistrictKeyser24.7 in1.3
Preston County School DistrictKingwood68.6 in4.9
The schools

16 schools

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

High

  • Jefferson High School, Shenandoah Junction
  • Washington High School

Middle

  • Charles Town Middle School
  • Harpers Ferry Middle School, Harpers Ferry
  • Wildwood Middle School, Shenandoah Junction
  • Shepherdstown Middle School, Shepherdstown

Elementary

  • T A Lowery Elementary School, Shenandoah Junction
  • South Jefferson Elementary School
  • Blue Ridge Elementary School, Harpers Ferry
  • Page Jackson Elementary
  • Driswood Elementary School, Shenandoah Junction
  • C. W. Shipley Elementary School, Harpers Ferry
  • Wright Denny Intermediate School
  • Shepherdstown Elementary School, Shepherdstown
  • Ranson Elementary School, Ranson
  • North Jefferson Elementary, Kearneysville
Questions

Jefferson snow day questions

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More winter

More for West Virginia 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.West Virginia winter forecastThe season ahead for West Virginia: 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.