Earlier this week, Aggies had a surprise following Texas A&M announcing a campus-wide cancellation for Wednesday’s classes.
On Tuesday, Jan. 31, a CODE Maroon alert was issued, stating that A&M canceled classes and all non-essential operations would be closed at the College Station campus for Wednesday, Feb. 1.
Prior to A&M announcing its closure, students waited in anticipation for the CODE Maroon alert to be issued. Many surrounding schools and college campuses, such as all Blinn campuses and A&M campuses in Dallas, Round Rock and Temple had already canceled operations.
“Today it’s just been really cold, windy, a little bit rainy [and] not very nice to walk around in,” psychology senior Mercy Jackson said, describing the Tuesday afternoon weather.
Although she wished A&M had canceled classes earlier, Jackson said she understood since it did not reach freezing temperatures but felt excited that classes were canceled for Wednesday.
“I’m excited about that because I just found out that we’re not going to have classes,” Jackson said. “That was a nice mid-week surprise.”
General engineering sophomore Nick Sabitov said he felt unprepared for Texas’ winter season, adding that he didn’t pack any winter clothes when he came to college. Like other students, Sabitov welcomed the news of classes being canceled.
“I think it’s awesome because I had a quiz [on Wednesday] that I wasn’t prepared for,” Sabitov said.
However, Sabitov said he thought A&M should have canceled classes earlier, stating the weather created risks for
those who had to drive to campus or who now lack a reliable source of transportation, such as walking or biking.
“I think that the second the weather service announced that there [was] a chance we could be having a winter storm, the responsible thing should have been to cancel classes [for Tuesday] morning,” Sabitov said.
General engineering freshman Julius Stockton said he was ecstatic when he found out classes were canceled. He immediately texted his friends to celebrate but said he planned to stay inside and stay warm.
“I know it’s going to be worse [on Wednesday], but it’s not worth going to classes in this type of weather,” Stockton said. “Most of my classes were pretty empty anyways, so I didn’t really feel like there was a need to keep the school open today.”
While the weather might have dampened students’ brief celebration, in a statement issued on Tuesday, Jan. 31, A&M urged all students, staff and faculty to proceed with caution when they return to campus.
“We understand that some of our surrounding areas remain impacted by icy roads,” the statement read. “As you return to campus, please use extreme caution, especially on bridges and overpasses.”
Campus returned to normal operations on Thursday, Feb. 2.
