UCCS has a plan for bad weather closures

Colorado winters can be quite brutal. Whiteout storms, icy roads and high winds can all contribute to unsafe driving conditions.

But the college has a plan in place for bad weather.

Brian Burnett, vice chancellor for administration and finance, is responsible for deciding whether the campus will stay open or not. He listens to advice from multiple sources, including Jim Spice, the chief of campus police and Mike Young, the vice-president of Pikes Peak Community College.

Burnett said he takes his job seriously. "If we feel we can open safely, we owe it to our students to open," he said.

It isn't simply Burnett in a room alone making the decision, however. "I am up at five in the morning," he said. "Our commitment to the students is that we will make that decision by 6 a.m." According to Burnett, he and Spice continue to monitor weather reports as the day continues.

An option that the University often takes is to delay classes. This does not take the form of a two or four hour delay, though. "We don't have a consistent class schedule," Burnett explained. Instead, Burnett sets a specific time for the campus to open on that particular day.

Spice assists in this decision, advising Burnett how he feels about the driving conditions. According to Spice, he sends patrol cars out to check the roads around campus. He has the officers use two-wheel drive vehicles so that they can accurately determine how safe the roads are around campus.

"Most of the time it's actually the [Austin Bluffs] Parkway," Burnett said.

According to Burnett, the campus does not have dedicated snow-removal teams, but reassigns Facilities employees for snow clearing as needed. "It's rare that we don't get the campus clear and ready to open," Burnett said.

But the problems with Austin Bluffs Parkway should soon change. According to Burnett, the college has just made a deal with the city that should result in fewer problems on that road.

The city has agreed to build a sanding station on University property at the city's expense. This new station will be located in the Expo Center on North Nevada. Burnett expects this station to help the school avoid some weather-related issues.

"Hopefully it will give a higher priority to North Nevada and the Austin Bluffs Parkway," he said.

Burnett still advised caution, however. "We're never going to totally avoid it," he said. "My philosophy is that if you live, work, play and go to school in Colorado, you should learn how to drive in the snow."

Burnett said that the ultimate responsibility lies with the students themselves. "We generally educate adults," he said. Students should keep their own safety in mind when deciding to make the drive to the school if the weather is bad.

Not everyone agrees with Burnett's decisions, however.

In December 2009, UCCS made the controversial decision to keep campus open on normal operating hours despite record low temperatures and icy roads that resulted in the closure of all Pikes Peak Community College campuses and all public school districts in Colorado Springs.

Some students felt that their safety had been put at risk, especially as the day in question was during the week before finals. Burnett disagrees with that viewpoint. "I don't feel like any student's safety was put at risk," he said.

Students can check the status of campus closures on the Public Safety website, uccs.edu/~pusafety. The Public Safety Department will have all campus closure and delay information available.

It also has a link to the e2campus emergency notification system, which allows Public Safety to send mass text messages and emails to students, faculty and staff members, letting them know of campus emergencies in addition to inclement weather closures.