Snow, Storm, and Emergency Closings
Filed under Business Affairs
Posted by , November 16, 2007
View all posts for November 2007
In the event Simmons College needs to be closed due to hazardous weather conditions, we will inform the Simmons community through the following two methods:
WBZ 1030 (AM) Radio and WBZ-TV Channel 4 Television - WBZ NewsRadio will read the list of school cancellations twice per hour (:05 and :35 past) during Storm Center operation and also during the local news updates on the CBS The Early Show Program. Every effort will be made to ensure that a Simmons College closure is made beginning with the 6:35 A.M. newscast. Members of the community who commute from long distances are advised to delay their departure from home until complete cancellation information is available.
Voice Mail Message - A voice mail message will also be broadcast over the College’s telephone system. You can call 1-617-521-3463 and select the menu choice for school closing information.
If possible, we will inform the Simmons community about storm and other emergencies through the following additional methods:
Email Message - An email message will be released to the Simmons community announcing if school is closed.
Web Posting - We will post a message on my.simmons.edu.
Every effort will be made to keep the College open during a snowstorm including making use of delayed openings. If appropriate, the broadcast and voicemail announcement will specify delayed opening time for day classes. Most closings will be for day closings ONLY. In the event that evening classes must be canceled, a separate announcement will be made by mid-afternoon. If public transportation is readily accessible from where you live, it is strongly suggested that this option be utilized to get to and from the College during snowy and icy weather.
Please do not call the Department of Public Safety to ask whether or not the College is open. During snow, storm, and other emergencies the Public Safety Dispatcher is extremely busy, and calls of this nature may impede the handling of serious problems.
Judgments for weather related closings are based upon the best information available from the Boston office of the National Weather Service. Clearly, each employee should make his or her own decision about whether to travel to work based on weather conditions in his/her area. However, if the College is open and an employee is not present, this absence will be charged either as vacation time or as unpaid time based on the employee’s preference. Employees who will not be coming to work should notify their supervisor as soon as possible in the morning. It is the responsibility of Deans, Vice Presidents, Department Chairs, Directors, and Department Heads to establish telephone trees if they so desire.
