Human Resources Information Systems
Tel: 780-5628 - Fax: 780-5554 - Email: HRIS
© 2003 USM - HRIS
A Member of the University of Maine System
U N I V E R S I T Y O F S O U T H E R N M A I N E
POLICY#: 101.5
SUBJECT: WEATHER EMERGENCY PROCEDURES
FOR CANCELLATION OF CLASSES AND WORK
APPLIES TO: ALL EMPLOYEES AND STUDENTS
ISSUED BY: OFFICE OF PRESIDENT
EFFECTIVE DATE: 11/01/89
REVISION DATE: 11/05/01
OPERATIONAL PLAN FOR CANCELLATION OF CLASSES AND WORK
The following sequences of events should normally take place for the purpose of determining
what measures should take place during a weather emergency situation:
4:15 a.m. to 4:45 a.m. - Administrators of Facilities Management for both Portland and Gorham campuses will assess situation via road checks, contact with Grounds personnel, USM Police Department and/or local public works departments.
4:45 a.m. - If a questionable situation is presented, appropriate administrators of Facilities Management will contact Executive Director of Facilities Management with an assessment of the situation.
5:00 a.m. - Executive Director of Facilities Management contacts Chief Financial Officer with report and recommendations. If Chief Financial Officer cannot be contacted, Executive Director will contact Provost. Chief Financial Officer contacts weather services and other local contacts for further assessment of situation.
5:30 a.m. - If situation is still questionable, further contact with Executive Director of Facilities Management is made as well as contact with administrators of Facilities Management offices at Portland and Gorham.
5:45 a.m. - Information and recommendations gathered from various sources are provided to President with decision made by President as to cancellation, starting at later time, or holding work and classes as regularly scheduled.
6:00 a.m. - If decision is made to cancel or postpone classes and work, Chief Financial Officer notifies President's Staff, USM Police, the Executive Director of Media & Community Relations, the Director of Telecommunications & Campus Card Services, and/or appropriate administrators. The USM Parking & Transportation Manager will notify the University shuttle bus company as to status of operations for the period. The Executive Director of Media & Community Relations will give an authorized announcement to select radio and television stations in the Southern and Central Maine area and Director of Telecommunications & Campus Card Services will have recorded announcements placed on University Storm telephone numbers.
CANCELLATION DURING WORKDAY
The decision to cancel classes and work due to a storm emergency during the workday is made by the President. This decision will involve the cancellation of classes after a particular time with an announcement as to the time offices will be closed and employees may leave. Once the decision to cancel has been made, the President's Office will notify each member of the President's Staff. The President's Staff are responsible for notifying their division personnel of the decision. The Chief Financial Officer will notify the Executive Director of Media & Community Relations who will notify radio and television stations of the appropriate announcement. The Chief Financial Officer will also notify the USM Police Department as to the shuttle bus operations with the shuttle bus normally making at least one trip from each campus after the final class of the day has been held. The Chief Financial Officer will notify the Director of Telecommunications & Campus Card Services to have recorded announcements placed on the University storm telephone numbers.
LOCATIONS AND OPERATION AFFECTED BY STORM EMERGENCY
The decision to cancel classes and work due to a storm emergency applies to both the Portland and Gorham campuses and the School of Law. The decision applies not only to credit activities of the institution, but also to non credit courses, meetings, Public Service offerings and other activities of the University including the operation of Child Care services at the Portland and Gorham Campuses.
The decision regarding classes and work at Lewiston/Auburn College is made independent of decisions on weather cancellation made at the University of Southern Maine and the University of Maine at Augusta. Students and staff at Lewiston/Auburn College from USM or UMA could face the circumstance where USM and UMA are closed but Lewiston/Auburn College is open or vice versa. To avoid confusion, the Lewiston/Auburn College announcement will not include reference to Lewiston/Auburn College affiliation with the University of Southern Maine.
The University of Southern Maine is a receiving site for Education Network of Maine courses originating from other University of Maine campuses. When the University of Southern Maine is closed due to a weather emergency, classes received at USM from other campuses will be canceled. Should a class, which is to be received from another campus be canceled due to a storm emergency at the originating campus while the University of Southern Maine remains open, the Office of Extended Academic Programs will attempt to notify, by telephone, the students in the class.
The Portland and Gorham Child Care Centers will close during inclement weather when the University is closed. Because the radio message to cancel classes sometimes gets confusing when there are a number of cancellations, parents of children in the Child Care Centers should be notified that a cancellation of University classes means that Child Care services at these sites will also be canceled.
When academic/credit classes are not in session, the decision to cancel non credit workshops, seminars, and classes in periods of inclement weather will be made by the Director of Community & Professional Education. During the academic year when classes are in session, cancellation of classes and/or closing the University due to bad weather will follow the usual winter weather cancellation policy with non credit and other University activities. Should the decision be made to cancel non-credit activities due to bad weather, the Director will confirm such a decision with either the Vice President of Enrollment Management or Chief Financial Officer. The Office of Media & Community Relations will be informed of the cancellation decision and will initiate the necessary radio and television stations notifications. In instances where the University will close due to severe weather conditions and on a day when no academic classes are scheduled, non credit activities will automatically be canceled. The cancellation of non credit activities on a non academic class day does not constitute a University weather emergency. Such a cancellation will not affect University offices, and University employees will be expected to report for their normal duties/shifts.
Due to the rental/use of the USM Ice Arena by outside parties, the Ice Arena may remain open during periods that the rest of the University is closed. The declaration of an administrative leave period due to weather for the Ice Arena will be made by the Director of Athletics and Ice Arena Manager, and the decision will be available on the Ice Arena Information Line (780-5991).
The declaration of an administrative leave period due to weather as applicable to Wolfe's Neck Stone House operations shall be determined by the Office of the Vice President, Enrollment Management.
As weather conditions in and around Augusta can vary significantly from those prevailing in the Portland area, the decision to close offices at the Muskie School Operations in Augusta will be based on the weather decision made by the University of Maine at Augusta rather than on the decision being made for the Portland area by USM.
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Tel: 780-5628 - Fax: 780-5554 - Email: HRIS
© 2003 USM - HRIS
A Member of the University of
Maine System