Professor Perspectives on Snowdays

The inclement weather of the past few weeks has affected nearly every class. Professors across departments are having to readjust their schedules to make up for missed class meetings over the three snow days when the school was closed, classes cancelled and all administrative offices shut down. Professor Brian Pilecki of the Psychology department says, “Missing the first several classes will likely have some negative consequences on class, though it will be interesting to see how much.  I’ve had to revise my syllabus twice, changing the schedule, and as a result, changing the weight of the first two exams.  Initially, my class was set up so that students could have their first exam before spring break, but now I will be giving the first exam after the break.” He confesses that although it poses a challenge for him as a professor to restructure the syllabus, “it’s an unfortunate start…not something that cannot be overcome.” His class, which meets on Mondays only, has been among the worst affected.

“I am happy that I don’t teach Mondays” says Professor Eileen Kane of the History department in response to my question about her opinion of snow days this semester. “There’s a sense however, that we haven’t been able to get the semester going with all these snow days.” Instructors have tried to compensate for the time lost because of the snow days through online tests and make up classes. Meeting online is another option that some professors are considering. This is especially useful for classes that meet every working day (such as some of the language classes) which cannot easily be rescheduled. 

Professor Hisae Kobayashi, Senior Lecturer in Japanese, says, “I can cancel my classes once or twice during a semester.  If we have more cancelation days, I have to find a day or days to offer make-up sessions, which may probably be more challenging.  I don’t think it is easy to find good dates and time for everyone.  Next time I’m going to use Google Chat to have Japanese classes online in order to avoid make-up sessions.”

Such alternative assignments facilitated by the use of technology are precisely what the college is aiming at for faculty says the Dean of Faculty Abigail van Slyck. It will help professors “weather-proof their class sessions.” According to Dean van Slyck, in earlier years professors could decide to hold class in the face of college closings. But there has been a rethinking about this policy now, for various reasons, including a heightened awareness about students with mobility issues, an understanding of the difficulty and time involved in clearing up the snow and a realization of the importance of communicating clear and unambiguous information to students and all levels of faculty (especially new and adjunct faculty).

Many professors also feel that at times the weather makes it absolutely necessary to close school. Professor Tek-wah King, Senior Lecturer in Chinese, mentions, “Whether campus is to remain open or not during a storm is a complicated issue; it entails decision making that cannot always be risk-free. What we have to take into consideration is not only academic expectations, but physical practicality and personnel safety concern as well.” Some professors have to drive from very far away, and it is impractical to expect them to come to campus in heavy snow. Professor King went on to say, “At times when the entire state has announced a travel ban, shutting down the campus–like most of the other schools do–may therefore be the only thing that can logically happen.” Further, as Professor Candace Howes of the Economics department points out, “It is extremely difficult for faculty and staff who have children in school to manage their lives when the college is open and all the schools are shut down,” which was the case on the day I reached out to her, Monday, February 9. On that day, the college decided to remain open, although schools in the area, and in other parts of the state made the decision to stay shut.

For professors who live closer by to the college, coming to campus may not be a good option either. Professor Hisae Kobayashi mentioned how in the past she had driven up to campus, but had to drive back and cancel class since she could not find a spot to park as the snow had yet to be plowed. She discovered that it was because of a lack of staff employed and believes “The College should hire more people who are working for students’ daily lives.”

For Professor Andrea Lanoux of the Slavic Studies department, lack of employees is not a good enough excuse. She has a particularly unique solution for the issue of clearing up campus in the aftermath of a snowstorm. She believes that instead of continuing to infantilize its students, the College should invest in purchasing hundreds of snow shovels that the 1900 able-bodied students of Connecticut College can use to clear up the snow. “Instead of getting themselves drunk during the free time of a snow day, students can spend their time more usefully, by helping clear up the snow.”

Teagan Atwater ’16 however, believes that Professor Lanoux’s suggestion may not be very useful because students may decide to slow down the snow clearing process. In any case, it looks unlikely that in the short run Professor Lanoux’s suggestion will gain much traction with our college’s infantilized students. It also looks as if by the end of the semester, the snow days will have had little impact. As Professor Pilecki said to me, “I don’t see the goal of class to ‘fill up’ students with as much knowledge, facts, and theory as possible.  Therefore, I am confident that students can still have a great learning experience and by the time spring rolls around, all of this snow will be a distant memory.” •