Over a week later, I am still reminiscing about the two beautiful snowy days where I did nothing but hunker down inside and watch the time pass slowly. Last weekend, after surviving the first two weeks of school, Pitt’s campus and many others in the Northeast were hit with awful snow and ice. As college students, we took this opportunity to sled down Flagstaff Hill, catch up on work or sleep and ruin the Ugg boots we never waterproofed.
As a Pittsburgh native, I can confidently say this was an insane amount of snow combined with frigid weather. It was one thing when I was a child and could look forward to a snow day and hot chocolate, but now on cold winter days when high schools move to flexible instruction or closures, college students are still forced to bundle up and face the cold. In the last three years, I have walked in snow, through slush, on slippery roads and during single-digit temperatures without Pitt batting an eye.
Most teachers refused to create accommodations or offer a Zoom link to keep my fellow classmates and me safe. Many students walk upwards of 30 minutes, take unreliable Pittsburgh buses and commute with their own vehicles to campus. In past conditions, Pitt gave us lists of ways to stay warm and keep our pipes from freezing in the dorm, but never the very obvious solution.
While it is not ideal to have virtual or asynchronous classes, the technology utilized during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic plays a critical role in moments like these. I was shocked to see the closure alert from Pitt late Sunday night. Allowing professors to turn their classes online was the only right answer. Weather like this is a serious safety concern that I feel Pitt and this city have never properly addressed.
Perhaps this unwillingness to cancel classes comes from fear of backlash or wasted money, but these schools still face backlash by risking student safety when they stay open. Colleges definitely do not play by the same rules as primary and secondary schools to protect students during poor weather.
While the choice to force classes to become remote came as a shock for many students, it is the responsibility of the school and city to provide a safe and productive environment. Many other businesses around campus stayed open, endangering the lives of their staff for a small benefit. While my classmates and I pay to go here, we want to feel safe walking to class.
Snow and cold winter days have just begun, and it will be interesting to see what stance Pitt takes in the future. In my opinion, the two-day closure did not impede learning, but actually improved it by forcing remote learning. It is the role of any university to recognize the safest course of action.
In this storm, something changed here at Pitt. Whether it was the extra inches of snow, freezing temperatures or a call for safety, the decision to close school for two days changed my mind on the operations side of Pitt that I felt had failed students so many times before.
Sierra O’Neil is a junior marketing major who loves long walks, overpriced coffee and overanalyzing social media ads. A Pittsburgh native, she is always looking for different places to explore and companies to hire her as their new intern. Connect with Sierra by emailing her at [email protected].