Weather causes Wesleyan campus closure; classes continue online

With+roads+closed%2C+students+on+campus+make+the+most+of+the+weather.

Maliah Lacour

With roads closed, students on campus make the most of the weather.

The campus at Texas Wesleyan University will remain closed Wednesday as large parts of north Texas are impacted by the ongoing winter storm. 

Dennis Hall, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students, announced the transition to temporary remote operations at 7:19 a.m. Monday. 

 “We apologize for the late notice and any inconvenience. We’ll continue to monitor the weather and provide updates the remainder of the week.” 

As the ice continued to build on the roads throughout Monday, a notice was released continuing the remote operations through Tuesday. With temperatures below freezing, local roads remained closed and unsafe to navigate.  At 3 p.m. Tuesday, remote operations were extended until Wednesday, February 1. 

An icy rain mixture causes roads across the metroplex to become hazardous.
An icy rain mixture causes roads across the metroplex to become hazardous.

The university released a statement Tuesday stating how continuing classes with an online format will avoid rescheduling them later. “Extending virtual instruction helps prevent stress at the end of the semester when students and faculty are crunched for instructional time”. 

While classes moved online, campus activities were canceled due to the dangerous conditions the weather posed. Events such as the women’s JV basketball game and the Country Dance Club meeting were canceled. 

Snow and ice are not a common occurrence in Fort Worth, TX.
Snow and ice are not a common occurrence in Fort Worth, TX.

Brooke Boyd, a second-year mass communications major, lives off campus and was glad the university took precautions to make sure students stayed safe. “The roads are really bad right now so it’s nice to know that students who live off campus are still able to participate and access their classes.”  

The National Weather Service has extended their winter storm warning for the area through 6 a.m. Thursday. Texas Wesleyan has yet to announce if remote operations will remain past Wednesday.