The National Weather Service predicted that Hudson County would face up to four to six inches of snow as well as 40-mile-per-hour winds on Tuesday, February 13. As a result, all Hoboken schools were closed and decided to take a snow day. However, Stevens also decided to take the weather forecast as an opportunity to cancel classes and close offices that particular day. This is highly unusual because the last time Stevens Institute of Technology announced a snow day was February 12, 2019, almost exactly five years ago, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most of the faculty and staff, as well as the student body, were shocked to hear of the school’s decision because other universities took a different approach. Schools like Rutgers University, Kean University, Montclair State University, Fairleigh Dickinson University, and Drew University were scheduled to have remote classes and some even remote midterms. As mentioned on nj.com, Stevens was “equipped for remote learning” but felt that the students and faculty deserved a break. It was one of the only major institutions to do so.
Vice President of Student Affairs Sara Klein was an advocate for canceling classes altogether, noting that “there’s great wisdom in taking a step back and embracing the simplicity of a good old-fashioned snow day.”
Nobody was as thrilled as the Facebook moms, though! The minute Stevens announced the day off, the Parents of Stevens Facebook page flooded with commentary supporting the school’s decisions and exclaiming that this is exactly what their children needed. One mom wrote that her son “has been under a lot of pressure lately,” and was glad he gets some time to himself, while another revealed she and her daughter were from Florida, so the snow day would be “sensational.”
But, as expected, Facebook moms can never truly agree on everything, so there were some parents who expressed more concern. They were confused as to why Stevens could not just go remote and believed their children to be losing precious class time. Quite quickly, they were confronted by other parents on the page. One person wrote, “Why complain?” and another mom said that Stevens could not “please everyone” with the snow day.
But when reviewing the page, those comments started a deeper discussion. The parents mentioned that after the COVID-19 pandemic, schools stopped using traditional snow days as a solution and concluded going virtual was a better option. However, remote learning only works for some kids, and it can be argued that it is primarily beneficial for schools, not students.
The moms shared a love for traditional snow days and adored the idea that their children could still experience them after the pandemic. They applauded Stevens’ devotion to the students and faculty by making this decision. The parents posted pictures of the snow ducks and snowmen that were built all across campus and wished all Stevens students a happy snow day.
