We're Back! (Because It's October in the Berkshires)

Hello, Flake Followers! We're very excited to be back for another--hopefully very predictable--season of Greylock Snow Day.

You're probably wondering about the fate of ol' GSD in the new world of virtual learning. You may have read this piece. Or this article. Or even this one. But, we are happy to state that reports of GSD's demise have been greatly exaggerated.

The Home Office in Williamstown will stay open. Even though the day-off-from-school type of snow day may be a thing of the past (more about that below), school districts are still going to be impelled to cancel travel to school on days that are simply too treacherous. We will definitely still fire up the supercomputers whenever a storm is lurking, and we will do our best to offer spot-on predictions about delays or cancelled travel for in-person students. The show will go on.

Before we talk about the impending snow event for Friday, we need a little help with a grass roots movement. 

We implore you reach out to your Superintendent or Head of School within the next few weeks in order to retain the sacred snow day. (We're talking about a real snow day here. No Zooms. Now messages from teachers about assignments. Just a free day off and everything resumes the next day.)

Everyone's an activist these days, and that goes for GSD as well. These are the talkings points we encourage you to use for your email or letter. ("You," of course, refers to your Superintendent or Head of School.)

*We respectfully request at least one full, real, pre-Covid snow day per winter--should conditions warrant such a day. 

*As someone who advocates for the social and emotional well-being of your students, you are surely aware that 2020 has been a once-in-a-lifetime stressful and disappointing year. So many joys and opportunities have--poof!--vanished into the ether. To take away the joy of the snow day from students just might be the tipping point. You do not want that to be your legacy.

*You won't be on an island with this decision. Many schools and colleges already have a Mountain Day in the fall or Field Day in the spring. But you, with your wisdom and vision, could corner the winter market by having your "get out of school free" day in January or February or March. Superintendent/Head of School = cutting edge. That is a nice combination. And just think of the goodwill you will earn from with your constituents with a well-timed, old-fashioned snow day. Do we hear the words "renewed contract"? Why, yes we do.

Feel free to cut and paste and send these ideas along to the Boss of your school. Let's make this happen before Thanksgiving break!

So, it's supposed to snow on Friday. The top image is one generated by the US (GFS) model showing accumulated snow by 6 PM on Friday. Yikes. The bottom image is from NWS-Albany and shows a more realistic prediction of 1-5 inches (highest totals in places above 1000 feet).

For an October snow event, this storm has some steam. Early season storms are always hard to predict because there often is no snow pack or base of cold air, which somewhat explains the wide range of predicted snowfall.

In terms of timing, precipitation for this event will start Thursday night as rain and then transition to snow overnight and into Friday. The commute from your final Zoom meeting in your living room to the kitchen for Friday afternoon snacks should not be treacherous, but if you are out and about on the roads, things could be a little greasy. 

We're definitely very intrigued by this storm and it has our entire staff's attention. It has the feel of the October 29-30 storm of 2011 that dropped over a foot in South County and over 6 inches in North County.