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MSU Denver Alerts:
MSU Denver and the Auraria Campus are open under normal operating conditions.
Please review the weather procedures below for specific information about closure or delayed start procedures and impacts on work and class schedules.
For additional updates on Auraria Campus operations visit: AHEC Campus Announcements
-Updated Nov. 6, 2024
How to stay up to date on weather-related closures or delays:
Generally, full-day closure and delay decisions are determined before 6:00 a.m.
In the event of a campus closure, delayed start or early dismissal, students and employees will receive a text message and/or email from the RAVE Emergency Notification Alert System with current information.
Sign Up for Emergency Notification System alerts:
Visit the MSU Denver Emergency Notification System alert page to add mobile device numbers or additional email addresses to receive alerts. The system uses your MSU Denver NetID and password.
Additional ways to stay up to date on weather-related closures or delays include:
- Reference this webpage
- Call the Inclement Weather Line at 1-877-556-3637
- Visit AHEC’s weather-related closures and delays webpage
- Follow:
- Follow @MSUDenver on Twitter
- Follow @MSUDenver on Facebook
- Follow @AurariaCampus on Twitter
- Follow @Auraria on Facebook
Announcements are also shared with local news stations 9News, CBS4, Denver7, and FOX31.
If weather conditions necessitate campus closure
Campus closures are classified as a result of the time of closure:
- Full-day closure: campus is closed for the full academic and work day
- Delayed Opening/Late-Start: Campus is closed until a designated time before which no work, class sessions with in-person instruction, or class sessions with real-time virtual instruction will take place and after which regular schedules should resume
- Early-close: Campus closes at a designated time after which no work, class sessions with in-person instruction, or class sessions with real-time virtual instruction will take place until the following day
Closure Types and Guidance Quick Reference
| In-Person Classes
(Students/Faculty) |
Online Classes
(Students/Faculty) |
In-person Work
(Staff) |
Remote Work
(Staff) |
|
| Full-day closure | Canceled, campus closed | Canceled, for real-time virtual classes | Closed, to non-essential work | Closed, to non-essential work |
| Delayed Opening/Late Start | Canceled, until late start time when campus opens | Canceled, for real-time virtual classes, until late start time | Closed, to non-essential work, until late start time | Closed, to non-essential work, until late start time |
| Early Close | Canceled, after early close time when campus closes | Canceled, for real-time virtual classes after early close time | Closed, to non-essential work, after early close time | Open, remote work should continue |
Full-day Closure
Faculty and students
All real-time virtual or in-person instruction is canceled for the day. Student effort in all classes may continue at the discretion of the student, but no real-time virtual or in-person instruction will occur.
Any individual mandatory attendance policies for specific classes are suspended if campus is closed. Faculty members should not require students to attend in-person or online class sessions when campus is closed.
Staff
Essential Employees, who are already pre-identified by their departments, such as facilities staff, must report in-person. Staff members who ordinarily work on campus are not required to report to campus and are not required to work remotely.
Staff members who have a remote-work agreement in place also do not need to work during a campus closure unless instructed to by their supervisor for critical business needs. The University encourages flexibility and equity.
Late Start or Early Close
Faculty and students
For late-start, if a real-time virtual or in-person class is scheduled to begin before the designated delayed start time, that class is canceled. For example, if the campus will open at 10 a.m. and a class runs from 9 to 11 a.m., that class is canceled. If the campus will open at 10 a.m. and a class session runs from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., students will attend the session when the campus opens.
Any classes scheduled on or after the delayed start time should resume, as scheduled.
For early-close, if a class is scheduled to end after a posted early dismissal time, that class is canceled. For example, if campus is closing at 2 p.m., a class that runs from 1 – 3 p.m. is canceled.
Staff
For delayed starts, employees who are scheduled to work in-person on campus that day would report for work at the delayed start time. Employees working remotely that day would also start their days at the delayed start time.
Early dismissal would apply only to anyone working in person at that time; employees working online/remotely are generally expected to complete the workday as usual. Supervisors are encouraged to be flexible.
Remote Operations during University Closure
The Chief Executive Officer and President of MSU Denver may decide to transition to remote operations when conditions or other interruptions compromise the safety or productivity of its students, faculty, and staff or the efficiency of University operations.
Remote Operations, as defined in this policy, require non-essential employees, including MSU Denver faculty and staff members, to work outside of the office via internet, phone, or other electronic communication method. Remote Operations will enable the University to remain open to perform key business functions to serve its students and the community.
When the MSU Denver President decides to conduct University-wide operations remotely, non-instructional employees should refer to their departmental guidelines and work with their supervisors to determine their work plan during the remote operations period. Supervisors should exercise appropriate discretion and flexibility concerning non-instructional staff who are able to work from home. When possible, non-instructional staff who are not able to work remotely will make alternate arrangements with their supervisor. A move to Remote Operations will not affect existing Flexible Work Arrangements.
A move to Remote Operations requires faculty members (i.e., an instructor who leads the impacted class/lab) to cancel their affected in-person classes and to make other appropriate arrangements with their students to ensure continuity of academic operations.
Classroom obligations and work duties should be fulfilled at a later date
A campus closure does not mean students, faculty, or staff members are unaccountable for any classroom content or work duties that would have occurred on the closure day, but instead, should plan to fulfill those obligations on a different day.
If a class session does not require active instruction and student attendance, either in-person or online, student effort may continue at the discretion of the student.
As with all University policies, implementation of this guidance will require faculty discretion to navigate discipline-specific or unusual situations. The assumption is that the spirit of this guidance should be upheld to the best of the faculty member’s ability.
Use judgment and communicate with faculty or supervisor
If campus is open during inclement weather, MSU Denver encourages students, faculty members and staff members to use their best judgment as to their ability to safely reach campus. Students should communicate with faculty, faculty with their department chairs, and staff with their supervisors if they feel unable to reach campus in a safe manner.
How we determine campus closures
Weather-related closure, early dismissal and late start decisions are always made collectively and cooperatively by the AHEC (Auraria Higher Education Center) and the Auraria Executives Council, which includes leadership from each of the three educational institutions on the Auraria campus (MSU Denver, CU Denver and Community College of Denver).
AEC members receive information directly from the National Weather Service in Boulder and also consult with AHEC Facilities Services and Emergency Management. Before and during a storm, AHEC officials participate in public-safety conference calls with the NWS and consult with campus safety officials. The officials then evaluate the information with Facilities Services to gauge the team’s ability to keep the campus accessible and safe.
The safety of students, faculty, and staff is paramount. These decisions must be made with due consideration to the safety and teaching, service, and outreach missions of the majority of students, faculty and staff. Faculty, staff, and students should evaluate their own circumstances carefully, exercise appropriate judgment, and take responsibility for their safety when making decisions during an emergency.
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