Did you go to your classes Monday? If you didn’t, we couldn’t blame you. Walkways and roads around campus were still covered with inches of snow and ice days after the weekend blizzard that dumped about a foot of snow on Fairfield.
Of course, not many could have predicted getting buried under 12 inches of snow just days into December, but winter weather in New England is not so far-fetched. Most students here accepted the fact they would be snowed in on Friday and Saturday. However, being expected to trudge over walkways buried in ice and snow on Monday is another story.
Students in the townhouses walked down to main campus on the poorly plowed road behind the athletic center. Cars that were shoveled out skidded down the hill narrowly missing students on their way to class. If we cannot make it to class safely, then we should not have class. It’s that simple.
For many of us Monday was the last day of several of our classes. It is understandable that the administration would not want us to miss crucial information about final exams and professor evaluations. Their academic commitment in this respect is most remarkable. But shouldn’t academics take a back seat to several students taking ugly spills on those long treks to Canisius, Donnarumma, Bannow and the school of business? We think so.
The conditions of the paths around campus over the weekend were the stuff of a personal injury attorney’s dreams. The liability that the school faces if anyone falls and hurts themselves on their way to class should be kept in mind by the university.
Furthermore, throughout the storm roads and highways around the town of Fairfield were markedly in better shape than the roads on campus. Any drive around the area over the weekend would lend credence to the assumption that Fairfield University was woefully unprepared for this storm.
Obviously, it is hard to expect perfect conditions in the wake of a blizzard. We’re sure that once the snow started falling everyone working at snow removal on campus did their best to dig Fairfield University out of the white blanket covering the campus.
Still, something clearly went wrong. Should there be more equipment and staff devoted to snow removal for times like this? Perhaps. Should students being able to walk to class without fear of falling on a sheet of ice be kept in mind more by the administration when decisions are made surrounding class cancellations? Yes. Should Fairfield University make a better effort to prepare itself for future blizzards this academic year? Absolutely.
Ultimately the students safety lies in the hands of the administration. While snow storms of this magnitude are few and far between in Connectict, it only takes one accident for Fairfield’s winter wonderland to turn tragic.
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