The multiple delayed openings, early dismissals and snow days this semester have affected the way professors run their classes.
"Bad weather is an inconvenience to all of us; we deal with it," Dr. Carroll Rawn, an associate professor within the Biology Department, said.
Rawn has had several lab sections from his General Biology of the Cell class affected by the snow. His 140 students meet three times a week for lecture and during one of the nine lab sections.
"Since the course has lab sessions almost every morning and afternoon of the week, almost any closing, delayed opening or early dismissal results in loss of a lab session," Rawn said. "Already lab sessions have been lost on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Loss of any lab session requires adjustment of the lab schedule so that no group falls behind."
According to Rawn's website, he has revised the lab schedule for his students. The revised schedule indicates all missed lab sessions will be caught up as of next week.
Dr. C. Lynn Carr, chair of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, also has made changes regarding how her Introduction to Sociology class is taught because of the snow.
"I posted my notes online for a missed lecture that closely outlined a chapter in the book," Carr said. "Students were given the opportunity to ask questions about it in class, but we will not cover the material closely in class as I had planned."
"For the other missed class, instead of showing an in-class short video, I have asked students to watch it online and then complete an online quiz for extra credit," she said.
If a certain day of the week is impacted more than others, Carr believes the university could "consider modifying the schedule."
"A Friday could count as a Tuesday, for example," Carr said. "I understand this may be difficult to implement, however."
Shelby Cadet, a freshman student in Rawn's class, feels her professors have been handling the snowy situation well.
"So far my professors have done a good job of keeping us well-informed and on track regarding lessons," Cadet said.
Carr also recommends students keep up on their work when the weather is bad.
Cadet agreed with Carr's recommendation indicating she has already taken steps to ensure she stays up-to-date with her classes even if there are missed sessions due to weather.
"When the weather isn't pleasant, I'm sure to do reading or online work at home," Cadet said. "I don't want to fall behind just because I couldn't get on campus."
Jessica Card can be reached at jessica.card@student.shu.edu.
