Reminder of weather-related policies and practices

During challenging winter weather conditions, faculty, staff and students should make every reasonable effort to get to and remain on campus for their regularly scheduled commitments so services can be maintained.

At the same time, safety is very important, and all individuals are advised to always use good judgment about the risks of travel.

Heading into the winter months, it is a good time of year to review departmental practices related to winter weather emergencies. Though it is rare for MSU to suspend operations due to weather, all departments should have emergency plans in place that:

• Identify critical functions that must continue during a weather-related closing.
• Identify essential employees who need to work to sustain critical functions if MSU suspends operations.
• Identify how to communicate work instructions to essential employees during suspended operations.
• Identify opportunities for general daily work to continue through telecommuting when appropriate.

It also is a good time to review and encourage employees to review their preferences at MSU Alert. By visiting alert.msu.edu, members of the MSU community can sign up for alerts via landline phone message, text message and email. In the case of inclement weather (or any emergency), supervisors, staff and faculty are encouraged to monitor alert.msu.edu, where information and updates will be posted.

Finally, for those working during times of heavy snow, remember parking may be limited to MSU ramps, and drivers should use one of the following campus entrances: Shaw Lane at Hagadorn Road, Shaw Lane at Harrison Road, Collingwood Drive at Grand River Avenue or Mount Hope Road at Farm Lane. These entrances will be high priority areas for plowing.