Official Campus Policy on Hazardous Weather

(Updated: October 16, 2006)

There are times throughout the year when situations, particularly hazardous weather, necessitate the delay of classes or the closing of campus to ensure the safety of students, faculty and staff. When these situations — such as winter storms or tornados — occur, a decision may be made to change the status of normal campus operations after careful review of the circumstances by the University Police Department and administration officials.
As quickly as a decision can be made, information is communicated in a variety of ways.

SPSU utilizes the services of participating radio and television stations who broadcast school closings and, in some cases, also post the information on their station web sites. You should tune into these stations consistently, as postings may vary in their timing and in their alphabetical or category position on scroll bars.

The stations used by SPSU are: TELEVISION WSB TV (2) WAGA TV (Fox 5) WXIA TV (11) WGCL TV (46) RADIO WSB 98.5 FM (and 750 Talk AM) WGST 640 AM WLTM LITE 94.9 FM WSTR—STAR 94 FM WVEE 103.3 FM WFOX 95.5 FM The Beat KISS 104.1 FM Cool 105.7 FM 97.1 JAMZ FM

Information is posted on the SPSU web site, if at all possible, at www.spsu..edu

The campus general telephone number will contain a delay or closing message at 678-915-SPSU (678-915-7778)

If information CANNOT be obtained from any of these sources because of serious power or other service outages, the University Police Department can be reached at 678-915-5555. However, please do NOT call the department unless it is absolutely necessary, because personnel will be extremely busy. The communication tools above will almost always serve your needs.

Members of our campus are encouraged to exercise good judgement associated with overall personal safety and the safety of others during severe circumstances.

Dr. Newell's Weather Philosophy:

I listen to the weather and traffic reports each morning as I, too, drive in. When, in my judgment, there are conditions that would create serious delays in commuting, I reserve the right to issue a general amnesty on partial absences for late arrivals. Get here if you can, when you can, safely. If you have a really special situation, a message on my voice mail and a timely visit to my office will go a long way toward convincing me.

If campus is closed when we should be meeting, stick to the schedule and watch WebCT for updates from me. I will post an update as soon as possible after the cancellation of class, and you will be expected to check WebCT within 24 hours of the cancelled class.

Cancellation of class does NOT change the due dates of assignments unless specific information to the contrary is provided on the course WebCT page. Turn in your assignment by alternate means if necessary (email, fax, my drop box outside J-310). Contact me as soon as possible if none of these alternatives is available to you.