Last Tuesday the weather in Georgia made headlines for the second time this winter. According to CNN’s Ed Payne, students were sent home and grocery stores were almost entirely cleared out. 

But why are the citizens and officials of Atlanta taking such dramatic precautions over a couple inches of snow and some ice? 

Truth is those weather conditions for the southern states can sometimes be more significant than they can be for us due to lack of experience and task forces. The South’s record-breaking weather conditions have left us to compare and consider what it takes for our community to act in a similar way. Within the last couple of weeks we’ve had several travel advisories and one day of classes cancelled due to weather conditions, but by no means are we reacting to the weather in the same way as some who live in Georgia.

The unbearable cold and gross amounts of snow and ice on campus have left us all asking the same question – What does it take for Purdue to cancel class for the day? On days it doesn’t stop snowing, we still have class. On days it’s close to -20 degrees, we still have class. Who makes the decision to cancel class, and what are they considering when making their decision?

If you were curious enough to reach out to the Purdue website, you probably found very limited information on what it takes to cancel class for a day. There’s plenty of great information about what do in harsh weather conditions in order to protect yourself but not that much on the criteria Purdue considers in order to cancel class. According to the Adverse Weather Conditions Policy, “The University takes into consideration local and regional weather conditions, travel conditions and decisions by local school districts when deciding whether to delay, dismiss or cancel classes and/or routine operations for an entire campus due to Adverse Weather Conditions.”

This information can be found at: http://www.purdue.edu/policies/facilities-safety/iva6.html.

But that’s kind of common sense right? To help everyone understand how the University makes decisions regarding snow and cold temperatures, I asked Senior Director of Environmental Health and Public Safety Carol Shelby what the University takes into consideration when deciding to cancel class. This was her response:

“The president  reviews a recommendation from the Provost and the Treasurer.  My role in this process is to gather information and data with regard to current and predicted temperatures (and wind chills) and road conditions.  There is no set number of inches or temperatures that makes this decision a black and white answer. As you can imagine, when Purdue does cancel classes, it has an impact on student learning and student success, so the process that is in place must consider a number of factors, including considering the cost to the student of making the decision to lose all or part of a scheduled class or lab day.  That said, we have to consider the ability of our off campus students, as well as the faculty and staff to safely travel to campus to provide those classes, labs, and campus services. We begin watching the weather predictions about 5 days prior to the storm date.  We consult with the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, local law enforcement, and our on campus weather professors and other local weather professionals.  We consider the time of day the snow falls, and when the temperatures will be the coldest.  Again, we look at whether the adverse weather is going to get worse, or get better.  Based on all of this input, I make a recommendation to the Provost and Treasurer.”

A big thanks to Carol for clarifying what goes into the decision making here on campus! I hope you now know that much more and understand the steps the university officials take when deciding whether or not to cancel class. Stay warm Purdue!