hillfarm Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Dd attends a local community college PSEO program. Today our weather is bad and our roads are impassible. I have no idea of whether it is the same in the town where the college is 35 miles away. She emailed all of her teachers for today's classes and told them she couldn't get in and asked if there were any assignments, especially any that she could submit online, for today. She also called and left messages on their phones. What else should she do to indicate that 1.) This is beyond her control, she actually wants to be there rather than here, and 2.) She is a diligent student and wants to complete everything required, not get out of anything due to the snow? Between us, there is absolutely no way she could have gone in. Dh is sick and we tried to get him to the Dr. this am, but even though we were driving behind the scraper/salt truck, we had to turn around and return home after a couple of miles. And secondly, there is no way in the world I would send my 16yo, brand new driver out on roads even half this bad. So anyway, she doesn't want to make a bad impression on her instructors and is worried about missing class. I'd appreciate any suggestions. thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daria Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Are you sure the college didn't close due to the snow? Especially if it's a community college where most kids commute? If not, then I think you're absolutely fine. Professors understand about snow, and things beyond their students' control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildcat Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Our CC will announce on their website and the news stations' TV channels/websites when they are closed for weather reasons. I agree with Daria that even if the school is open, the instructors should be understanding but will probably expect your dd to check with other students with regards to missed notes as opposed to them providing the missed material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 It sounds like your daughter has done what she needs to do. Both of my older girls did full time PSEO, and we live in the very cold and frequently snowy upper Midwest. Schools here rarely close due to snow, because it's a common occurrence. They will occasionally close due to excessively frigid weather and send out a text message through their alert system if this is the case. This winter has been particularly mild so far, but we have some ground rules for winter driving. I do not allow my 16 year old to drive on a day when it's actively snowing heavily. She can drive the next day if the roads are mostly clear. If I can, I will drive her to and from classes if I believe current road conditions are beyond her abilities. This is also what we did with my oldest during her first winter driving on her own. Now she handles all her own winter driving. In our experience, college professors usually understand that some people will have more difficult commutes than others when the weather is questionable. We live in an urban area so our roads are cleared pretty quickly, but other students who live further out will have a lot more trouble. If the college isn't closed, your daughter will be expected to make up the work or get notes, just as if she missed any other day but it's really not a big deal. If she's concerned, maybe she could plan to drop into office hours later in the week and touch base with her instructors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Looks like she did everything she could. Emailing is expected; calling and leaving a phone message is not necessary, in my opinion. I do not quite understand her asking about assignments for today - wouldn't students already know if there were any assignments they should have completed? If any assignments are to be turned in on paper today, I'd send an electronic copy to show that I completed the assignment on time. A PP asked about the school being closed: FWIW, we had one day of weather related closure of campus during the past 13 years. So, just because it snows that does not mean the school would be closed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 I would suggest she send a photo of the local conditions, sized appropriately. In the future, she could consider staying over with a friend in town when the prediction is for road conditions that require an experienced driver. As a college instructor, I would not expect a student to stay in town if bad weather is expected unless there were an important exam the next day. Before exams we do recommend staying over if snow is in the forecast. And honestly, I would not expect a 16 y/o dual enrolled high school student to have friends at CC in the other town to whom she is close enough to stay overnight. Sending a pic - overkill and no proof anyway. The instructor is able to figure out road conditions 30 miles away if he is suspicious. that's where it's important to have "cred": a student who is diligently attending class will not be doubted when it comes to weather emergencies... whereas a student who is habitually cutting class and not turning in work may encounter more scrutiny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Agree with regentrude. Don't panic. Emergencies happen. Missing because of horrible weather does not make a bad impression. If she has anything she was supposed to turn in today I would send an electronic copy immediately and follow it up with the paper submission when the roads are passable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillfarm Posted January 26, 2015 Author Share Posted January 26, 2015 ...Sending a pic - overkill and no proof anyway. The instructor is able to figure out road conditions 30 miles away if he is suspicious. that's where it's important to have "cred": a student who is diligently attending class will not be doubted when it comes to weather emergencies... whereas a student who is habitually cutting class and not turning in work may encounter more scrutiny. And therein lies part of the problem. This is only the second week of school and this is only the second day of class for her M/W classes. So she hasn't had time to develop any "cred" with any of these teachers. Oh well, I think she has done all she can. It's still snowing and tomorrow may be a little iffy also. Such is life in a rural area, with unpaved roads that don't get much attention during bad weather. Also, I am hearing about problems with the local public schools, which did open this morning as usual, but after several hours of snow the buses are having trouble bringing the children back home. It's not that we get so much snow, but that it often comes in conjunction with ice and also that our roads are torturous - dozens of sharp curves and many with 30 - 90' drop-offs on one or both sides. And then, the fact that our little township doesn't have a whole lot of snow removal equipment. But that wouldn't have helped much today anyway. This am I tried to take dh to the Dr and we were right behind the snowplow, which was able to remove most of the snow but none of the ice. We had to turn around and come back home and dh had to submit to my doctoring instead of professional care. The reason she asked about assignments is that one of the instructors is known to give assignments in class that must be completed during class time and turned in before the students leave class for the day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Granny_Weatherwax Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 We have to include snow day procedures in our syllabi. Has she checked her syllabi to specifics? Has she looked at the CC's website? As an instructor whose CC district covers multiple towns in rural IL, I would not expect my students to come to class if weather conditions prohibit safe driving. An email would suffice as notice. I think what your DD has done is sufficient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 The reason she asked about assignments is that one of the instructors is known to give assignments in class that must be completed during class time and turned in before the students leave class for the day. Oh, that makes sense. She did all she could. I hope her instructor is nice about this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Hopefully she has a reasonable professor. I'm strict on deadlines, but when there are storms, I'm more lenient. If they can't get to the college or if it a stormy day when they have to upload (over half my students have satellite internet), I move the deadline for the entire class. I'd rather move it for everyone than to try to figure out who could deal with it and who couldn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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