SMU canceled all in-person classes and closed campus through Tuesday, as an arctic cold front sweeps through the Southern states. SMU Aware sent out a campus-wide email Sunday evening alerting students and faculty of the cancellation.
“As we continue to navigate challenging weather and travel conditions, and with the safety of our community in mind, in-person classes are canceled on Monday (1/26) & Tuesday (1/27),” SMU Aware stated. “Online courses will be held as scheduled. Some graduate and professional courses may be held virtually.”
SMU Aware also stated that on-campus dining will continue to be available at Arnold and the Hughes-Trigg Student Center. Dedman Center for Lifetime Sports will operate with modified hours on Monday and Tuesday.
“SMU Libraries, the Meadows Museum, and all other campus facilities will remain closed [on Monday and Tuesday],” SMU Aware.
The National Weather Service has issued an extreme cold warning for the DFW area until Tuesday morning since temperatures will remain in the 20s, with lows in the teens, and wind chill as low as -10 degrees.
Many students are taking advantage of the freeze. Videos on FIZZ have gone viral, featuring students skiing, boogie boarding and snowboarding on an icy boulevard. Other students treated the snow-covered steps around campus as small hills, sledding down them in makeshift sleds.
“In our four years of being here, we just have never really seen snow like this, and we wanted to take as much advantage of this opportunity as possible,” SMU economics major, senior Edward Weld said.
On Thursday before the freeze hit, Meadows Dean Sam Holland sent an email to faculty and staff, noting that Meadows operations would likely be affected and urging them to continue monitoring their SMU communications.
On Saturday evening, the university announced that all missed instruction hours due to inclement weather must be completed asynchronously, with no in-person make-up classes scheduled.
SMU isn’t the only North Texas university to cancel classes due to this freeze. TCU and UT Dallas have suspended in-person classes through Tuesday. Dallas ISD has also canceled in-person classes through Tuesday.
In an email sent to faculty on Sunday evening, SMU said they will share an update regarding Wednesday’s operations on Tuesday afternoon. Until then, classes and operations are expected to resume as normal on Wednesday.
