Effects of the ‘Snowpocalypse’ at Grace College
By Zachary Pappas
January 2014 will go down in history as one of the coldest months ever in the Midwest. It got so cold that the lone polar bear of the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago was moved indoors. If not even an animal built for surviving the cold felt like braving the weather, what chance did we poor college students have? Thankfully, Grace College decided we didn’t have a chance and canceled four days of classes due to the snow and cold.
“Generally, the decision to cancel class involves myself, Dr. Swanson and Craig Allebach who is our chief of campus safety. The three of us meet and discuss what the weather conditions are and what the county is saying as far as travel conditions,” explained Aaron Crabtree, Dean of Students. “Ultimately both decisions to cancel classes this semester were related to the county closing roads, which forced our hand.”
Crabtree further went on to explain that the effect of these snow days was amplified by the eight-week system that Grace College has in place. Students partaking in Monday or Tuesday night classes have now effectively missed 25 percent of class time due to the snow days.
Professors are now doing their best to adjust to the situation. This includes rescheduling assignments, compressing lessons and even cutting out some of the less essential information. Dr. Patrick Loebs, Assistant Professor of Communications, has felt rushed ever since the first snow day: “I just feel like I’m scrambling because I started the class off already one day behind. As far as assignments are concerned, you have to go with what you’ve got. I feel for those that only teach once a week and got both of their classes canceled. However, it’s nobody’s fault and we have to deal with it.”
Another effect of having classes cancelled is that professors don’t have as much time to focus on working with individual students, as Mike Yocum, Associate Professor of Communications, outlined. “Everything I do is faster. I’m talking faster and students don’t have as much time to prepare for speeches and quizzes.” Having had so many classes canceled due to weather also amplifies the negative effect of students or professors missing class due to sickness or family issues.
Hopefully, the worst of the winter is over and no more snow days will be required. Professors are doing what they can to ensure that students do not fall behind.
