MONDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2014 | DELTA COLLEGIATE8POLAR VORTEX

Michigan has been experienc-ing extreme weather this winter. Car troubles and traffic accidents are always an issue, but this winter there is an added worry of frostbite and hypothermia.

The -25 wind chill and the fluc-tuating subzero temperatures on Jan. 28 lead to many warnings on the chance of frostbite. Based on information provided by the Na-tional Weather Service, on Jan. 28 it would’ve taken 10 minutes out-side to get frostbite.

Students are encouraged to take extra precautions to stay safe and warm.

Drivers should carry an emer-gency kit in their car, according to Galvann Smith, Lieutenant/ Direc-tor of Law Enforcement Training at Delta College. The kit should include something to keep warm, such as coats, gloves or even a

blanket. Smith said the kit should also have a flashlight, emergency equipment and a cell phone with a power cord.

Smith gave further advice for students commuting to Delta.

“Never have less than one-half tank of gas,” he said. “Water can form in the tank.”

He suggested to those who can afford it to have a good battery and good tires on their cars.

If you’re having trouble with

your vehicle, public safety can help. Public safety will assist with starting or unlocking a vehicle. They’ll help get a tow truck for those who need it, and if someone needs gas, they’ll either call a tow truck or help them to get to a gas station.

You can call public safety for the previous services at the gener-al number (989) 686-9111 or (989) 686-9113 or from a campus phone at 9111 or 9113.

Stay safe in sub-zero situations

President Goodnow explains why we stayed open

BY BRIAN CARLESSTAFF REPORTER

& VICTORIA MALLOYCORRESPONDENT

Delta Collegiate: What is the current snow day policy?

President Jean Goodnow: We have a team of people that look at what is going on in the three counties that we primarily serve – Mid-land, Saginaw and Bay. We find out if the highways are cleared off, if they’re able to be traveled in a safe way and then we have a conference call to discuss that various information. Then we make the decision. We usually try to make it by 6 a.m. The big thing is, we don’t want

anybody to endanger their life, so we leave that decision up to students to make for themselves. Our instructors here at the college, I think, are very accommodating and very understanding.

DC: Does Delta take into consideration students who are bussed here?

JG: We are concerned about that and we did build some of the bus enclosures out here for the inclement weather and certainly we have worked with all three of the bus stations (in Midland, Saginaw and Bay) to work out routes for our students. We are different from other universities, like our sister institution Saginaw Valley, in that Saginaw Valley does not have enclosed buildings like we have. We’re very unique in that students do not have to go outside once they come into our campus. We’re preparing students for the real world out there, not like high school where you get a

snow day and you can go to the mall.

DC: Do you think that the current snow day policy should be expanded to address temperature?

JG: I’m not sure why it should be. The day that we closed we’ve had colder days since that day that we did not close on. Temperature is something that varies considerably.

DC: Who’s in mind when you make the decision?

JG: From my perspective as president of this institution, I think about all 10,000 students that we have, 10,000 students that differ in many respects. I really feel for the students that drive older cars. I also feel for those single parents and parents that have children when their schools close and they don’t have other arrangements made for their children. I do know that some people have brought their children here, and we’ve never said anything against that. I try to think about all of those different factors, as well as the students that say, “I paid for this education and I want to get what I’m paying for.” You hope that people who have been raised in Michigan understand that this is part of Michigan. This is where we live. We’re teaching some basic life skills, some basic survival skills to be suc-cessful.

DC: What would you say to the students who are upset that we didn’t close? What would you say to the students who say “Delta doesn’t care about me?”

JG: We do care. We care tremendously. And part of the reason why we’re staying open is because we care. We don’t want anybody to get hurt. We don’t want anybody to go out on the roads when they don’t feel like it’s safe for them. That’s the decision that they need to make. And we give that decision back to them to make for themselves. But we’re going to be here for them.

DC: What kind of feedback did you get from students and faculty?

JG: Mixed. Of course I had some people that were upset with me and I had some people that were very proud, some people that were very encouraging.

DC: Will the mixed feedback affect your decisions go-ing forward if we should have some more extremely cold weather?

JG: I always like to get feedback and I always think that I can learn from feedback and I never want that feedback to stop, whether it’s positive or negative. I think that we are an institution that really believes in continuous qual-ity improvement. I know that I’ve made mistakes before and I probably will make mistakes in the future. I feel like I made the right decision this time. And I just hope that I can make the decisions in the future. And I also know that there’s no way that I’m ever going to please 100 percent of the people all of the time. And I accept that.

Editor-in-chief Karissa Lutz and Associate Editor Taylor Syring sat down with President Jean Goodnow to discuss why Delta College was the one of the only schools in mid-Michigan to be open on Tuesday, Jan. 28, when temperatures fell to potentially dangerous levels.

Sisters Khai Reszke, 21, and Kelsi Reszke, 19, of Reese, make it to their car on Jan. 28. Delta remained open despite a wind chill of -25 degrees. Brendan Taberski warms up in the protection of his car from the treacherous

winds, after making the hike to the outermost front parking area.PHOTO BY LORENA WYGANT

DELTA COLLEGIATE | MONDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2014 9POLAR VORTEX

Delta College is notorious for holding classes on holidays or dur-ing dangerous weather

conditions. On Jan. 28, Delta College was

one of the only schools in the state of Michigan to stay open. Even the University of Michigan closed school for the first time in 30 years due to temperatures that fell below 0

degrees and wind chills as low as -25 degrees.

Was Delta College try to “one up” the mighty University of Michigan?

Delta’s school closing policy can be seen at delta.edu. The pol-icy is incomplete, and needs to be expanded to address sub-zero temperatures as well as the driving conditions it currently includes.

When the temperatures reach levels low enough to cause frost-bite in the time it takes to wait for the bus, school should not be in

session. The policy reads: “The College

encourages safe driving practices and avoidance of unnecessary risks in traveling to work or class-es. It is each driver’s responsibility to decide whether to travel to the College, based on road conditions driving skills and vehicle condi-tions.”

This means the weight of the decision falls on the faculty and students, instead of the adminis-trators who should make the call on behalf of the community as a whole.

What about the safety of the stu-dents? Delta was not the only col-lege that remained open that day; Baker College, Northern Michi-gan, and Kettering also opened. However with local K-12 schools closed, many students found them-selves with a young son or daugh-ter at home and nobody else there to watch them.

Other traditional and nontradi-tional students may not be privi-leged enough to have a reliable means of transportation, with car batteries failing in such cold weather.

Under the current policy Delta students should have excused ab-sences, to use without penalty, when they are using their discre-tion in “avoidance of unnecessary risks in travelling.”

It’s time for Delta to open up the filing cabinet, wipe the dust off of the outdated policy and update the school cancellation requirements. If not in giving some wiggle room for students to choose their own snow days, then to better define the requirements for such days. This would better protect all of the students and faculty, and account more fully for those traveling from outside the Tri-Cities, and with nontraditional situations.

The Delta student body even expressed their thoughts via social media. Twitter and Facebook were full of anger as unhappy students expressed concerns and personal stories on Delta’s decision to re-main open.

I have confidence in the school’s administration to look into the matter, and update the current pol-icies, as to be better prepared for the next weather and temperature hazard.

Cold should have closed campusBY MIKE PALKOCORRESPONDENT

Delta College rarely closes due to Michigan winters, so why were students and faculty baffled by

Delta’s decision to stay open on Tuesday, Jan. 28? This deci-sion shouldn’t surprise stu-dents, but tem-peratures were averaging nega-

tive five degrees with a wind chill of -25. Despite the below freezing temperatures and many schools like Saginaw Valley State Univer-sity and Central Michigan Univer-sity closing, Delta remained open; a decision I fully support.

Students were outraged and took to social media to express their opinions on why school should’ve been cancelled.

This is Michigan; we should

all be used to cold weather and sub-zero temperatures. When you endure years of Michigan win-ters you should know to bundle up, and if you don’t, start with a jacket, closed toed shoes, a hat and gloves.

Here’s something to consider while you complain about being one of the few schools open: Delta College differs from most schools because we are a community col-lege and the students who attend commute to get here.

Our walks to class are much dif-ferent than their walks to class, be-cause we walk from the parking lot to the inside of the building, while other students at universities have to walk from building to building and walk to and from their dorms. They are outside more than we are and for longer periods. On Tues-day, Jan. 28, all it took was some-one being outside for 10 minutes to get frost bite. I don’t think that walking three to five minutes to get

inside those double doors at Delta is going to kill you, but walking from your dorm to a building for fifteen minutes in the cold could put you in harm. Guys, we weren’t in harm’s way!

When you face the facts of that cold January day, that’s all it was – cold. The roads weren’t re-ally bad, and I say that with confi-dence because though I don’t have classes on Tuesdays, but I did have to drive twenty minutes to work. Sure, the back roads might have been a little slick, but that was it. Roads weren’t snow covered; you could clearly see the cement, so the commute to Delta wasn’t put-ting any students in danger.

Delta has closed before when weather conditions could be po-tentially dangerous for students and faculty, and I believe if they thought we would be in any dan-ger by coming on Tuesday, they would have closed, but that wasn’t the case.

In Michigan, we don’t fold for coldBY BRANDEE THOMASCORRESPONDENT

DID DELTA MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION

TO STAY OPEN TUESDAY, JAN. 28?

DOMINIC REIHL, 33Coleman

“The cold isn’t a big deal. If you have to park across the campus then it sucks, but having school open isn’t putting anyone at risk. It’s not like SVSU residents who have to walk across campus. Delta’s a confined space. It’s about road conditions more than anything.”

HANNAH MURLEY, 23Saginaw

“I didn’t go, because I have a kid. It sucks; because we single moms have to try to find a babysitter. Even Day care was closed, everything was closed.”

KALEB PETERS, 20Breckenridge

“Not really. If you live far away and roads are bad, the commute is harder to get here. It takes me like 45 minutes, especially if roads aren’t good.”

VANESSA HOLMON, 19Midland

“No. The roads were unsafe and the cold weather was bad.”

ELIJAH MILTON, 19Thomas Township

“They probably should’ve closed because every-one else was closed.”

KARA REDER“I do agree with their decision. We don’t have dormitories where students are required to walk across campus. I wasn’t affected walking from the parking lot to the building. I understand why Delta stayed opened. To me closing Delta is based on road conditions versus temperature.”