Joe Sciacca, Jr. ’13

A member of Austin Prep’s  graduating class of 2013, Joe turned a childhood fascination with weather into a career as a professional meteorologist, delivering trusted forecasts and helping communities prepare for changing conditions.

An Adolescent Infatuation

A proud 2013 alum of Austin Prep, Joe Sciacca, Jr. is an established meteorologist who consistently delivers well-researched weather reports with precision and validity. He graduated from Curry College in Milton, MA, as a Communications major, and proceeded to receive an undergraduate certificate in Meteorology from Pennsylvania State University.

Joe’s initial fascination with weather, however, can be traced back to when he was only five years old. Through research of his own accord, he grew up telling his friends about all things weather. When Joe was in middle school, he found joy in providing forecast reports during the morning announcements, keeping his entire school informed of the conditions ahead.

While Joe expressed an interest in weather from a young age, his humble beginnings at Austin Prep played a key role in influencing his undergraduate course of study, and therefore his long-term career aspirations. When Joe arrived at Austin Prep in the fall of 2009, he knew he wanted to continue to use his voice to apprise those around him, saying, “I continued my love and expansion of knowledge in the field of meteorology at Austin Prep. In my junior and senior years, I was able to get my daily forecast posted on the announcement board in the lobby.”

With his love for weather only growing as the years went by, Joe was certain he wanted to hit the ground running as he transitioned to the professional world.

From Television to Freelance

Following his undergraduate experience, Joe completed a post-graduate internship at WHDH in Boston, working alongside Chief Meteorologist Jeremy Reiner. This eye-opening experience entailed curating graphics for on-air forecasts, and allowed Joe to gain ample exposure to the realm of television and broadcasting.

Taking advantage of new professional opportunities naturally expands your horizons. However, Joe has found that all of his endeavors, past and present, possess a common thread. They have each involved a crucial skill that has allowed him to tap into his childhood roots: conducting extensive weather research in the name of community well-being.

As an additional means of broadening his scope, Joe has also tried his hand at freelance meteorology. This effort speaks to Joe’s versatility, as freelance meteorology involves simultaneously providing weather forecasting, data analysis, and climate risk management to a wide variety of clients.

Now a Driving Force of National Weather Forecasting, Inc.

Since late 2022, Joe has been a valuable member of the forecasting team at National Weather Forecasting, Inc., an operation that informs transportation, energy, and media clientele of how weather conditions can affect planning and procedures.

Joe considers a major career milestone to be the accuracy of his forecast for the February 2026 North American Blizzard, a Category 3 bombogenesis that brought hurricane-strength wind gusts and upwards of 30 inches of snow to parts of New England. Joe’s specific predictions were set in stone well before the threatening weather made landfall, which set National Weather Forecasting apart from competing groups due to Joe’s particularly robust research about the storm risk.

Joe credits the dedicated colleagues who surround him at National Weather Forecasting; his particularly motivated peers inspire him to consistently embody excellence.

No matter where his career will take him, Joe will always recall with pride and gratitude that Austin Prep encouraged him to follow his dreams by providing him with a platform to express his intrigue in weather. A feature on a daily announcements board actually held quite a bit of importance for Joe, as this served as a confidence-builder for him.

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