Frequently Asked Questions

Public Predictions

Does this prediction apply to my school?
The predictions are created with Monroe County, PA data and is applicable to schools within the county, which includes Pleasant Valley, Pocono Mountain, East Stroudsburg, and Stroudsburg School Districts.

What about Pocono Mountain?
Under circumstances when elevation is dependent in determining who gets what, the more aggressive possibilities can apply to Pocono Mountain due to its higher altitude. For example, if a prediction has 75% Delay, 25% Closing, the closing odds are taken into account Pocono Mountain’s susceptibility to more snow and ice than the rest of the county.

What about Pleasant Valley?
Pleasant Valley is within Monroe County; therefore, the prediction graphic applies to them.

What about East Stroudsburg North or Notre Dame?
East Stroudsburg North High School is part of the East Stroudsburg Area School District; since the district is based primarily in Monroe County, the prediction graphic applies to them. Notre Dame generally follows the decision East Stroudsburg makes.

What about a school district in Pike, Carbon, or Lehigh counties?
The prediction graphics that are issued are geared for Monroe County, PA. During widespread winter events, when the timing is not as critical as usual, the prediction can be safely extrapolated to a neighboring county. However, during situations when the start and stop of a winter event can change the reaction of school districts by a shift of a few hours, the prediction is unlikely to verify for that county.

When are predictions issued?
First Prediction are usually created 24 to 48 hours before a weather event. Final Predictions are issued 6 to 12 hours before the start of the event. In some cases, if warranted, Second Predictions are issued 12 to 24 hours out.

 

Vogt WeatherWatcher Premium

What is the Premium Service?
The Premium site is paid-for content. The content is geared around local weather and school predictions for multiple counties across Northeastern Pennsylvania. Graphics include school predictions, weather observations, expected precipitation, temperature forecasts, and road impacts. Users can view this data for a specific county or they can see how the predictions vary by county on a regional level.

How much does the Premium Service cost?
Premium membership costs $28.99 for the winter season (October 15 until April 15), unless a discount is offered. Membership automatically renews every October 15; users may opt out of auto-renew by going to their account (see My Account under “Premium” in the menu), click on the “Subscriptions” button, then click the link “Turn off auto-renew.” Please note there is no refund policy.

How do I know if I am signed in?
Signed in users should see a profile picture in the upper right corner of the website; if you do not see it, sign in here.

What is Memberful?
Memberful is the vendor that handles the paywall and subscriptions of the Premium site. You may see Memberful in the address bar when viewing your Premium account.

Can I edit my Memberful information?
Absolutely. To do so, click on the My Account link located under the “Premium” tab in the menu.

I forgot my password or email address.
If you forgot your password, use the Reset tool when viewing the Sign In screen. If you forgot your email address, please contact Vogt WeatherWatcher.

Images are not showing on the webpage.
Check to make sure you are signed in and have an active Premium membership (go to My Account then click on “Subscriptions”). If the images still do not display, close then reopen your internet browser. If you are using an iPhone or iPad, go to Settings, tap Safari, tap Advanced, and make sure JavaScript is turned on; you may have to clear the browser’s cache (Go to Settings, Safari, Clear Browsing History). If all solutions fail to resolve the problem, please notify Vogt WeatherWatcher.

How often is the information updated?
Usually, the data is updated every two hours or sooner. Each graphic has a “Data as of” time-stamp; if you notice the time stamp is older than 12 hours, please notify Vogt WeatherWatcher immediately.

Why does the Premium prediction differ from the Public prediction?
The Premium site relies on National Weather Service forecast data; if this data does not match Vogt WeatherWatcher’s thoughts on what is most likely going to occur, the Premium prediction may differ from the Public prediction.

 

Other Questions

When do schools determine if and how to react?
For morning-impact weather events, school delays or closings are typically announced between 4 and 5 AM, but usually before 6 AM. If schools conduct a two hour delay, there is a general “re-evaluation” period between 6 and 8 AM when schools could change their call from a delay to a closing. In situations where there is high confidence in a significant snow events, schools can delay the night before and re-evaluate in the morning. In some cases, high-impact events can cause schools to close the night before.

For afternoon impact events, early dismissal decisions are usually announced before the start of lunch periods. Cancellation of activities is typically decided by 1:30 PM.