Louisiana Snow Day Calculator: Ice, Rare Snow and the 177-Day Rule

Snow is rare in Louisiana. Shreveport averages 0.8 inch a year and Baton Rouge 0.1, while New Orleans, Lafayette, Lake Charles and Kenner have a snowfall normal of 0. So by our rule of thumb half an inch of overnight snow, or about 0.08 inch of ice, would close schools about half the time in all six cities.

Type your ZIP code above to see the chance for your school, worked out from the National Weather Service forecast for your own spot.

When schools do close, the year does not get shorter. Louisiana law sets a minimum of 177 days of 360 minutes, 63,720 minutes in all, and allows a shorter year only in 2 disaster cases (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1, as amended in 2022).

How much snow closes school in Louisiana?

About half an inch overnight in all 6 map cities, by our rule of thumb, the lowest closing point the calculator uses anywhere. The closing point grows with a place’s normal snowfall, and these cities have little or none.

Louisiana's six largest cities: normal snowfall a year (NOAA 1991–2020) and the snowfall and wind chill at which, by our rule of thumb, schools there usually close.

Our rule of thumb: the usual closing point is 0.5 × (normal snowfall a year)^0.7, the cold point the normal December–February low minus 45°F. How the calculator works.

Shreveport, with 0.8 inch a year, is the snowiest of the 6, but that still leaves it at the rule’s floor. Snow that falls while the air is above freezing counts for less in the calculator, because roads stay wet, and snow or ice that falls overnight or during the bus run counts fully.

Ice counts too: about 0.08 inch by our rule. The National Weather Service usually issues an Ice Storm Warning for around a quarter inch of ice or more, and its offices set their own snow criteria: the snow needed for a Winter Storm Warning is typically much lower in the Southeast than in the Northern Plains (NWS winter alerts). A warning out for your area raises the calculator’s chance.

Where does Louisiana get the most snow?

Around Shreveport, and even there it is about an inch. Of NOAA’s 116 Louisiana stations with a snowfall normal for 1991–2020, the snowiest is the Weather Service office at Shreveport, with 1.4 inches a year. Farmerville (1.2 inches) and 2 more Shreveport stations (0.9 each) follow, then Arcadia, Cotton Valley, Homer and Rayville (0.7 each).

Normal snowfall a year and normal December to February low at each of the 116 weather stations in Louisiana with a snowfall normal in NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals for 1991–2020, with each station's location, elevation and how complete its record is.

The 10 snowiest and 5 least snowy of 116 stations in Louisiana

Download “Normal snowfall at Louisiana weather stations, 1991–2020” (CSV, opens in Excel)

Built from: U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 (National Centers for Environmental Information).

The middle of the list is 0.1 inch a year, and 46 of the 116 stations, New Orleans’ airport among them, average none. The calculator blends the NOAA stations nearest your ZIP code, so its numbers follow your own part of the state.

Do snow days have to be made up in Louisiana?

In most cases, yes. Louisiana law sets the minimum school day at 360 minutes of instruction, not counting recess, and the minimum year at 177 days. A school system may change the minutes per day and the days per year, as long as the year still adds up to at least 360 times 177 minutes (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1).

The state’s handbook for school administrators puts that at 63,720 minutes, not counting recess, lunch, class changes or parent conferences (Bulletin 741, as published in February 2026).

A closure does not change the total. The local superintendent may dismiss schools in an emergency, but the law says that does not allow a school year of fewer than 177 days of instruction, outside its own exceptions (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1).

There are 2 exceptions. The first is a closure in the last 30 calendar days of the school year because of a natural catastrophe or disaster, when the state superintendent certifies it and the state board (BESE) approves; for a whole school system, every school in it must have been forced to close. The other covers schools that shared buildings after damage from a disaster or an emergency the governor declared (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1).

Read plainly, a snow or ice day outside those cases has to be made up somewhere, with extra days or longer days, to reach the 63,720 minutes. We found no set number of free weather days and no state form for approving ordinary make-up days.

Can Louisiana schools switch to remote learning instead?

They have to offer it, but we could not find whether it counts. The Louisiana Department of Education says school systems “must provide access to continuous learning when school closures occur,” and names a weather event among the causes (Continuous Learning page).

The state’s handbook also requires each school system to have a written continuous learning plan for closures (Bulletin 741). We did not find whether a continuous learning day counts toward the 177 days or 63,720 minutes, so ask your school system.

How cold does it have to be to close school in Louisiana?

We found no state cold rule and no Louisiana district’s cold number in our research. Our rule of thumb sets the cold point at a wind chill of 0°F in New Orleans, Lafayette, Lake Charles and Kenner, −2°F in Baton Rouge and −6°F in Shreveport. Each is the city’s normal December–February low minus 45 degrees, capped at 0°F; those lows run from 39°F in Shreveport to 48.3°F in Kenner.

The alert to watch is the Extreme Cold Warning, which means extremely dangerous cold or wind chills are expected or occurring (NWS cold alerts). Each local Weather Service office sets its own thresholds (NWS wind chill chart).

Who decides, and when do families hear?

The local superintendent, or a charter school’s chief officer, may dismiss any or all schools in an emergency, which the state’s rule says includes an imminent threat of natural disaster (Bulletin 741). Each school system sets its own calendar, and neither the state board nor the Department of Education approves it (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1).

We did not find a Louisiana school system’s closing clock in our research, so check your district’s website, app or local news. The calculator reads snow and ice from 6 a.m. the day before to 3 p.m. on the school day, so look the evening before and again early in the morning, since forecasts change.

Snow days in Louisiana

• Our rule
  • Half an inch of snow
  • About 0.08 inch of ice
• School year
  • 177 days of 360 minutes
  • 63,720 minutes in all
• Closures
  • Superintendent may dismiss
  • Year still needs its minutes
• Exceptions
  • Last 30 days after a disaster
  • Shared buildings after a disaster
• Remote learning
  • Plan required
  • Whether it counts not found

Questions people ask

How many days of school does Louisiana require?

At least 177 days of 360 minutes, or 63,720 minutes in all. A school system can trade days for longer days, as long as the year reaches that total (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1).

Do Louisiana schools make up snow days?

In most cases, yes. A closure does not lower the 63,720-minute minimum, except for a disaster closure in the last 30 days of the year approved by the state, or for schools that shared buildings after a declared disaster (Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1).

Who can close schools in Louisiana?

The local superintendent, or the chief officer of a charter school, may dismiss any or all schools in an emergency (Bulletin 741).

How much snow would close school in New Orleans?

By our rule of thumb, about half an inch overnight, or about 0.08 inch of ice. New Orleans has a snowfall normal of 0 inches. Only the school system decides, so check its website, app or local news.

Sources: Louisiana Revised Statutes 17:154.1 (the school year), Bulletin 741 (handbook for school administrators) and Louisiana Department of Education on continuous learning.

Facts checked October 29, 2026.

Updated October 29, 2026