Altoona, Wisconsin, 1,832 students in 4 schools

Altoona School District Snow Day Predictor

Q: How much snow does Altoona get?

About 57.3 inches a winter at a NOAA weather station 3.9 miles away, averaged over 10 winters. Between December 1 and March 31 that brings 6 weekday mornings a year with 2 inches of new snow or more, and 2.5 with 4 inches or more.

Q: What was the biggest snow day near Altoona?

12 inches on February 24, 2019, the largest single day at a NOAA weather station 3.9 miles away in 10 winters. The snowiest winter was 2018 to 2019, with 104.6 inches.

Q: Does Altoona get more snow days than other Wisconsin districts?

Altoona averages 2.5 weekday mornings a winter with 4 inches of new snow or more, more than 77 percent of the 412 Wisconsin districts with a station record.

Q: How does the Altoona snow day predictor work?

It reads the National Weather Service forecast for Altoona 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 Altoona’s own big snow morning: 4.5 inches, the top tenth of snowy weekday mornings at a NOAA weather station 3.9 miles away.

The odds of a closing or a delay on the next three school mornings in Altoona, measured against Altoona's own big snow morning of 4.5 inches.

The next three school mornings

Will Altoona close tomorrow?

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

Ten winters of school mornings

Altoona’s snow record

57.3inches of snow a winter

6school mornings a winter with 2 in of new snow or more

2.5with 4 in or more

4.5 ina big snow morning in Altoona: the top tenth of snowy school mornings

14school mornings a winter at 0 F or colder

More 4 inch school mornings than 77% of the 412 Wisconsin districts with a station record.

4.2Nov

14.1Dec

10.3Jan

14.1Feb

7.9Mar

Average snowfall by month, inches

Biggest day 12 in on February 24, 2019
Snowiest winter 2018 to 2019, 104.6 in
6 in mornings 1.3 a winter
1 in mornings 11.2 a winter

Measured at a NOAA weather station 3.9 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 Wisconsin rule

How Wisconsin counts a lost day

Wisconsin requires hours, not days: 437 for kindergarten, 1,050 for grades 1 to 6 and 1,137 for grades 7 to 12.

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

Next door

Districts near Altoona

District	Snow a winter	4 in mornings
Eau Claire Area School DistrictEau Claire	57.3 in	2.5
Chippewa Falls Area School DistrictChippewa Falls	41.3 in	2.3
Elk Mound Area School DistrictElk Mound	51.9 in	2.2
Bloomer School DistrictBloomer	37.9 in	2
Menomonie Area School DistrictMenomonie	45.3 in	2.5
Stanley-Boyd Area School DistrictStanley	51.1 in	3.7

The schools

4 schools

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

High

Altoona High

Middle

Altoona Middle

Elementary

Altoona Elementary
Altoona Intermediate

Questions

Altoona snow day questions

How much snow does Altoona get?

What was the biggest snow day near Altoona?

Does Altoona get more snow days than other Wisconsin districts?

How does the Altoona snow day predictor work?

How does Wisconsin handle snow days?

More winter

More for Wisconsin 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.Wisconsin winter forecastThe season ahead for Wisconsin: 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.