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Winter Weather Procedure

General Process

In the event of potential winter weather or the threat of winter weather, the Senior VP/Provost and the VP for Enrollment, Marketing & Communications will discuss the potential impact to the University community and planned activities or events.

The Senior VP/Provost and the VP for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications will quickly prepare a recommendation for action based on the best information available regarding the potential winter weather and will then be responsible for calling and informing the President. The President will make the final decision regarding the action to be taken. The VP of Enrollment, Marketing and Communications will be responsible for communicating the decision to the Winter Weather Communications Team (WWCT). The WWCT is responsible for implementing the decision of the President.

University closing

If the decision has been made to close the University, all classes and University-sponsored or hosted activities or events will be canceled unless otherwise stated. The University acknowledges that it has an obligation to continue services to its residential students in the event of a University closing due to winter weather.

Communicating Winter Weather closings to residential students and ensuring the continuation of services to these students is identified in the responsibilities of the WWCT.

For Canceling or Postponing Texas Wesleyan-Sponsored or Hosted Activities or Events

The President has the authority to cancel or postpone Texas Wesleyan-sponsored or hosted activities or events due to winter weather, regardless of whether the University is closed. If a decision is made to cancel or postpone the activity or event, the Vice President of the sponsoring division will assume responsibility for notifying activity or event participants of the cancellation or postponement in an appropriate and timely manner.

Essential Employees

The University recognizes its responsibility to maintain certain essential services during a University closing or emergency situation in order to meet the needs of our campus community. In the event of a University closing or emergency situation, employees designated as essential employees may be required by their division’s Vice President to report to work, continue working or work from home.

Employees who possess this designation are notified in writing from the Office of Human Resources and are designated as such by the Vice President of the division to which they belong. The Vice President will determine if the essential employee should carry out his or her duties on campus or at home. Essential employees who do not report to work as defined by their supervisor are charged annual or personal leave and may be subject to disciplinary action.

Process (in general order of occurrence)

Each November, the Office of Human Resources will issue a Winter Weather Reminder to all employees via email. The Winter Weather Procedure will be provided to new employees during the new employee orientation.

The Office of Human Resources will issue an Essential Employee notification letter to all employees that have been designated as such by their Vice President. Vice Presidents are responsible for outlining the duties of an essential employee during a University closing or emergency situation, informing employees of those duties, and providing a copy of the signed, Employee Designation and Notification Form to the Office of Human Resources.

Each November, the Office of the VP of Student Affairs & Dean of Students will issue a Winter Weather Reminder to all students via email. The Winter Weather Procedure will be provided to new students during new student orientation.

The Office of Enrollment, Marketing & Communications is responsible for posting the Winter Weather Procedure and Winter Weather Reminder to the University website.

The Office of Enrollment, Marketing & Communications is responsible for working with Human Resources, the Provost and Student Life to develop an Alerts Sign-up Communication Plan for employees and students.

The Senior VP/Provost and the VP for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications are charged with recognizing winter weather that has the potential of disrupting the normal course of business at the University. 

The Senior VP/Provost and the VP for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications will make a recommendation to the President. It is the goal of the Senior VP/Provost and VP for Enrollment, Marketing & Communications to make a recommendation by 10:00 p.m. for the status of the following day.

The President will decide which course of action to take with regard to closing the University, and/or canceling or postponing Texas Wesleyan-sponsored or hosted activities or events in the event of winter weather.

The VP for Enrollment, Marketing & Communications will advise the WWCT via email of the President’s decision and instruct the WWCT to implement the President’s order using the Winter Weather Communication Plan and other appropriate means. The VP for Enrollment, Marketing & Communications will call other Vice Presidents on the WWCT. Vice Presidents on the WWCT are responsible for calling members of their division.

If a decision is made to cancel or postpone an activity or event, the Vice President of the sponsoring division will assume responsibility for notifying activity or event participants of the cancellation or postponement in an appropriate and timely manner.

Important notes:

  1. The Winter Weather Procedure covers procedures for winter weather only. This includes snow, ice, sleet and other winter weather conditions that the National Weather Service would classify as hazardous for travel. The Winter Weather Procedure does not include environmental conditions or natural disasters that occur without warning (such as severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, earthquakes or floods) or threats to the University’s physical plant (such as fires, building collapse, chemical contamination). Procedures for responding to environmental conditions or natural disasters can be found in the University’s Emergency Communications Plan. 
  2. It is the responsibility of all divisions and departments identified in the Winter Weather Communication Team to develop and implement their response protocol in the event of winter weather and a University closing. 
Winter Weather Communication Team

The VP for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications is responsible for alerting the WWCT via email of the President’s decision to close the University. The VP for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications is responsible for calling/texting the Vice Presidents on the WWCT.

It is the responsibility of all Vice Presidents on the WWCT to call other members of the WWCT in their division in order to implement a weather closing or delay.

Each member/department of the WWCT has specific roles in the event of winter weather and is responsible for issuing their department’s winter weather protocol (including but not limited to the duties outlined below).

The WWCT:

Vice Presidents & Executive Staff: 

Dennis Hall, VP - Student Affairs and Dean of Students

Brian Builta, Interim VP- Advancement

Donna Nance, VP - Finance and Administration

Hector Quintanilla, VP - Academic Affairs and Provost

Alan Liebrecht, VP -Enrollment, Marketing and Communications

Megan Cooley – General Counsel

Departments: 

Athletics

  • Ricky Dotson, Athletic Director

Alumni Relations

  • Jeri Chipman, Director of Alumni Relations 

Enrollment, Marketing & Communications

  • TBD - Executive Director of Marketing and Communications
  • Maiya Hollie – Interim Director of Communications & PR
  • Ruthlyn (Marie-Nella) Riley – Interim Director of Marketing
  • Adam Brewer – Web Developer
  • Djuana Young, AVP Enrollment
  • Karla Rodriguez, Senior Director of Admissions

Facilities

  • Brian Franks, Executive Director of Facilities Operations
  • Jason Hughes, Facilities Supervisor

Human Resources

  • Angela Dampeer, AVP for Human Resources
  • ALT Donna Nance 

IT

  • Travis Wynberry – CIO
  • Jason Camp - IT
  • Keith Terrill 
  • Daryl Underwood
  •  

Risk Management

  • Cassius Miller

Library

  • Elizabeth Howard

Student Affairs

  • Carson Dinger, Director for Residence Life
  • Johnna Flenoid, Director of Dining Services
  • Gary Stout, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs

Security

  • Chris Beckrich, Security Manager
  • Anthony Garcia, Public Safety Supervisor

Academic Affairs

  • Helena Bussell Associate Provost of Academic Policy & Support // Accreditation Liaison
  • Steven Daniell, Associate Provost of Academic Affairs

 

Winter Weather Communication Team duties: 

Once the VP for Enrollment, Marketing & Communications advises the WWCT of the President’s decision, the following Winter Weather Communication Plan will be activated:

  • The Office of Student Affairs & Dean of Students, after the initial Texas Wesleyan Alert System message goes out, will send follow-up message(s) via email to all students informing them of additional pertinent information for students (including messages about parking, the rescheduling of exams, information about safety, etc.)
    • The Office of Student Affairs & Dean of Students is responsible for meeting the needs of residential students during a University closing by collaborating with Facilities, Food Services and Campus Security.
    • The Office of Student Affairs & Dean of Students will send a message containing information for residential students regarding on-campus student services (Dining Hall, Health Center, Campus Security and any additional student services that the Dean of Students deems essential for residential students in the event of a University closing). The Dean of Students will work with the Facilities Department to assess potential safety risks for residential students.
    • All members of the WWCT shall be copied on all messages to students.
    • The Head of Security (in collaboration with The Office of Student Affairs & Dean of Students) is responsible for ensuring the safety of residential students during a University closure.
    • The Office of Student Affairs & Dean of Students is responsible for setting a voice message recording on the University’s main extension (x4444) alerting inbound callers that the University is closed.
  • The Office of the VP for Finance & Administrationis responsible for ensuring that the following departments develop and follow their winter weather protocol:
    • The Office of the Associate Vice President for Human Resources, after the initial Texas Wesleyan Alert System message goes out, will send follow-up message(s) via e-mail to all employees informing them of additional pertinent information for faculty and staff.
      • Messages to consider include status of sidewalks, locked doors, reinforcing that the University is closed, revised scheduling (work with Provost office)
      • Let employees know how to document time off on their time cards
      • All members of the WWCT shall be copied on all messages to employees.
    • The Executive Director of Facilities Operations and Development is responsible for assessing potential hazardous conditions on campus that can result in safety issues. The Facilities Department is responsible for assessing and closing parking lots, pouring salt, closing sidewalks, etc. to ensure the physical safety of the campus community. The Facilities Department is also responsible for communicating potential safety issues (such as parking lots, sidewalks or stairs) to ALL members of the WWCT (including Human Resources, the Dean of Students and the Head of Security).
  • The Office of the VP for Enrollment, Marketing & Communications is responsible for providing leadership for consistent information to media outlets and to the Texas Wesleyan website.
    • The Office of Enrollment, Marketing & Communications will send out the initial alert to all subscribers of the Texas Wesleyan Alert System about the University closure. 
    • The Enrollment, Marketing & Communications staff will be responsible for submitting and posting correct and accurate information about a University closing to the following outlets:
    • Broadcast media: (Director of Communications)
      • WFAA-TV
      • KDFW-TV
      • KXAS-TV
      • KTVT-TV
      • WBAP 820
    • The Enrollment, Marketing & Communications staff will be responsible for updating the website news story and banner with pertinent information that is shared by other members of the WWCT.
    • Essential Information 
      • In order to be as clear and consistent as possible, the following uniform statement will be used in case of winter weather University closings:
        • Texas Wesleyan University is closed because of winter weather for (INSERT DATE/TIME). All classes are canceled. Please use caution and your best judgment when travelling. For on-campus emergencies contact 817-531-4911.
  • The Office of the Provost is responsible for rescheduling missed exams or other classroom related activities that result from a University closure, and communicating the rescheduled classroom activities to faculty, the Deans and Student Life (Dean of Students).
  • The Athletic Director is responsible for ensuring that all student-athletes and coaches are aware of the University closing and cancellation of University-sponsored activities and events, and encouraging them to use best judgment in traveling. 

Winter Weather Reminder Emails

For All Employees

From: AVP Human Resources
To: University Community
Sent: Nov. 1, Every Year
Subject: Winter Weather Procedure Reminder

Texas Wesleyan is committed to the safety and security of its students, faculty, staff and visitors.

With the winter season approaching quickly, please take a moment to make sure you are signed up to receive Texas Wesleyan Alert System messages and that your contact information is accurate.

The decision as to whether the University will close in the event of potential winter weather or the threat of winter weather is based on the overall concern for the University community’s safety.

Should adverse winter weather conditions arise, the President may close the University (all classes canceled), and/or cancel or postpone Texas Wesleyan-sponsored or hosted activities or events. In the event that the President decides to close the University, and/or cancel or postpone Texas Wesleyan-sponsored or hosted activities or events, notification of such action will be provided through the following outlets:

Announcements will NOT be made to confirm that the University is open.

The Winter Weather Procedure is available at www.txwes.edu/fees-costs-and-policies/university-policies/. Please contact the Office of Human Resources with any questions regarding this issue.

For All Students

From: Dean of Students
To: All Students
Sent: Nov. 1, Every Year
Subject: Winter Weather Procedure Reminder

Texas Wesleyan is committed to the safety and security of its students, faculty, staff and visitors.

With the winter season approaching quickly, please take a moment to make sure you are signed up to receive Texas Wesleyan Alert System messages and that your contact information is accurate.

The decision as to whether the University will close in the event of potential winter weather or the threat of winter weather is based on the overall concern for the University community’s safety.

Should adverse winter weather conditions arise, the President may close the University (all classes canceled), and/or cancel or postpone Texas Wesleyan-sponsored or hosted activities or events. In the event that the President decides to close the University, and/or cancel or postpone Texas Wesleyan-sponsored or hosted activities or events, notification of such action will be provided through the following outlets:

Announcements will NOT be made to confirm that the University is open.

The Winter Weather Procedure is available at www.txwes.edu/fees-costs-and-policies/university-policies/. Please contact the Office of Human Resources with any questions regarding this issue.