When overnight weather may force a campus closing, Chancellor Daniel Little (or the provost, in his absence) will make the decision whether or not to close campus after consulting with the vice chancellor for business affairs. If his decision is to close campus, the Office of Communications & Marketing immediately notifies:
The university makes every attempt to reach a decision between 5-5:30 a.m. so the information will be available on early morning newscasts.
In addition to the media notification above, senior officers will contact their staff members by phone. A phone tree effort fans out from each dean, director and department head to reach staff in their respective areas. Faculty and staff who have voicemail are asked to call their offices and update their outgoing voicemail message to indicate the campus is closed so that subsequent callers understand why they have reached automated messages.
When a daytime closing is necessary, the chancellor will relay that information to his staff; they then contact deans, directors and department heads, who then notify their faculty, staff and students. The Office of Communications & Marketing notifies the media outlets mentioned above.
When a decision is made to close the campus on a Saturday or Sunday, the directors (or designees) of the Mardigian Library, Information Technology Services, University Center and the Field House will be notified. The Field House staff will determine whether activities will continue while the rest of the campus is closed.
Information on whether the campus is open or closed is always accessible by calling 313-436-9157. Closure information will also be included on the University’s website. When closure decisions are made, the Office of Communications & Marketing will promptly post closure information on the website and on the university social networking sites (Facebook and Twitter). An email will also be sent to faculty and staff regarding the closure.
