We wholeheartedly agree with the University's decision to cancel class for two days.
It was a cautious move that ensured the safety of students, faculty and staff from unnecessary danger. Now, let's evaluate how USC could have handled the situation a little better.
USC officials waited too long to make a decision about canceling class. The announcement concerning Monday didn't come until after 10 p.m. Sunday, and by that time, most schools and businesses in Richland and Lexington counties had announced closings hours prior. Students driving back were in limbo, and we can safely assume many hesitantly left their homes and returned for no reason. On Monday, officials did exactly the same thing. Hours after most schools and businesses announced day two closings, USC followed suit.
Make a decision earlier next time. There's no reason to wait that long.
Also, why not send everyone a text or e-mail?
Carolina Alert is the text messaging system USC uses to send out information about emergencies on campus, and the system was recently updated. While news of a suspicious package or a shooting on campus are certainly bigger emergencies than a few inches of snow, shutting down campus for two days is worthy of a text.
Even if a text message wasn't sent, an e-mail would have been sufficient. The University swamps us with e-mails for things that certainly aren't as important as snow, so why couldn't they do e-mail for class cancellation? We appreciate the weather telephone line and the website updates, but it's not enough.
USC made all the right decisions this time.
Maybe next time, they'll make them earlier and communicate them better.
