OU community reminded of campus closing procedures

Severe winter weather will occasionally prompt Oakland University to declare an emergency closing, and members of the campus community have several channels of information to rely on when this occurs.

During emergency closings, all scheduled classes and special events are canceled; all university offices are closed; and official university operations cease, though specific exceptions may be authorized. Extension center classes will not be held if either the university is closed or the school district in which the center resides has canceled classes.

Students, faculty and staff are advised to refer to the following sources for information on official university closings:

• The university’s text message alert system
• The Oakland University website
• The Oakland University school closing hotline at (248) 370-2000.

and via the following TV and radio stations:

• WJBK-TV FOX 2
• WDIV-TV Channel 4
• WXYZ-TV Channel 7
• CW50-TV
• WJR AM 760
• WWJ AM 950

The university community is asked not to telephone the Oakland University Police Department or switchboard for school closing information.

In recent years, the university’s text message alert system has become the most popular source of information regarding closures. Any registered student or active employee with an OU e-mail address and Grizzly ID can register for this free service at oakland.edu/ready. Only subscribers receive emergency text messages, and voice alerts are available for those without text messaging capability.

Outside of inclement weather closures and cancellations, the emergency text messaging system is used only in situations that pose an imminent threat to the health, safety or welfare of people on campus, as well as during system tests conducted once per semester.

For more information about weather-related closings, please refer to the university closing policy included on the Administrative Policies and Procedures website. For more information about OU’s emergency preparedness and communication plans in general – which cover university closings, tornado warnings, psychological emergencies, lock downs, evacuations, bomb threats, hazardous material incidents and more – visit the Emergency Preparedness website.