How to find out if WMU is closed
Feb. 27, 2002
KALAMAZOO -- Your radio alarm clock wakes you to news that several elementary schools are closed because of a winter storm, but there is no mention of classes at WMU. How do you find out if the University is closed?
First, unless you have heard otherwise from one of the official sources listed below, assume the University is open and will remain open as scheduled. There are three ways that students, faculty, staff and others can determine if Western Michigan University is closed due to severe weather or some other emergency condition.
Call 616 387-1001
Closing announcements will be available immediately at 269 387-1001. This includes announcements that the University is closed, as well as announcements that the University will be closing at a specified time later in the day.
If you call 387-1001 and hear, "There are no messages waiting," that means the University is open, and there are no plans to close WMU as of the time you called.
Go to www.wmich.edu
Closing announcements will be posted immediately on the WMU home page under the links to WMU News, and additional information about cancellations will be posted in WMU News as soon as the information is available.
Radio and Television
As soon as a decision to close the University is made, area radio and television stations are immediately notified by University officials. Based on past experience, the radio and television stations in West Michigan do an excellent job of promptly and accurately reporting school closings.
Assume the University is open
In the absence of notification to the contrary via one of the official methods listed above, all normal operations will continue as scheduled. Assume the University is open.
The University policy governing closings was thoroughly reviewed and updated in December 2000. Among other things, that review resulted in the creation of the emergency information number, 387-1001, specifically so that students, faculty and staff would have another way of obtaining information about closings.
Click here for the complete "University Policy for Closures."
Media contact: Thom Myers, 269 387-8400, thomas.myers@wmich.edu