About

SCC Facility/Campus Closure

Division: Operations
SCC Policy Number: SPR3.3.17-1P
OPR: Vice President of Administration
Issued: 11/22/2019
Revised: 11/22/2021
Approved SCC President/CEO: 11/22/2021
Reference KCTCS Policy: 3.3.17; 4.23

Definitions

Closing College Facilities: This means all on campus operations other than those deemed essential to the protection of life and property are closed. Closing the college facilities results in the cancellation of in-person classes, activities, and meetings. All general offices are closed.
Delayed Opening: This means the opening of all on campus operations at a later than normal time. On campus classes will be cancelled during the delay.
Early Closing: This means to close all in-person classes, activities, and meetings at an earlier time than normal. Cancellation of non-academic activities refers to cancellation of an event such as theatrical productions, concerts, or other scheduled student activities, workshops, or community events.

Procedures

Weather Related

If a weather emergency situation develops, college officials will make an assessment of the current weather along with the immediate weather forecast to determine what closing or delays may need to be announced. The decision to close will be made by the College President or his designee after consultation with the Provost, VP of Administration, and others as appropriate. The College President or his designee will then make the decision to delay opening college facilities, close college facilities, or close college facilities early.

The VP for Advancement or designee will notify television stations identified in this procedure, post the closing or delay on the college website and social media platforms, and organize the SCC SNAP Emergency Notification System messages to be sent. Employees and students are directed to follow notifications regarding closure, delayed opening, or early closure of facilities.

When a college facility closing or delay is declared, all employees are excused from work with pay and required to go home. Essential emergency employees such as maintenance and operations will be required to work during emergency closings as directed by the VP of Administration and will be paid according to KCTCS policy concerning emergency closings. When possible, decisions to physically close facilities will be made by 10:00 p.m. EST the night before the closing and 6:00 a.m. the day of the closing. The decision to close facility early for evening classes will be made no later than 3:00 p.m. EST. Closures will generally be college-wide; however, the College President reserves the right to close specific sites based on weather and for the safety of employees and students affected.

Workforce training at employer locations will not be subject to college weather closure announcements. The decision to cancel workforce training will be made by the VP of Workforce Solutions after consulting the employer. The VP of Workforce Solutions will notify the College President of the employer’s decision.

Weather Related Notification Methods

SCC SNAP Emergency Notification System messages will be sent to the students’/employees’ preferred phone numbers and/or email addresses entered into PeopleSoft Employee or Student Self-Service. Student/employees should visit kctcs.edu/snap to assure the preferred phone number or email address is listed. The SCC switchboard will contain an automated voice closure message.

Standard website and social media notifications for weather related closings and delays are as follows:

Closed Message on website and social media: All SCC campuses will be closed on “day of the week”, “Month and date”, year, due to inclement weather. For 24/7 assistance, call the Student Services Center at 855-66GO-SCC. Students should continue to check email and Blackboard shell for assignments.

Delayed Message on website and social media: All SCC Campuses will open at “time”, on “Month and date”, year, due to inclement weather. All 8:00 a.m. and/or 9:30 a.m. classes are canceled.

Close Early Message on website and social media: SCC Campuses will close at “time”, on “Month and Date”, year, due to inclement weather. All classes after “time” are canceled.

Website and social media notifications will include:

The following television stations will be notified of any delays or cancellations:

Lexington, KY

Channel 18 (WLEX) NBC
Channel 36 (WTVQ) ABC
Channel 27 (WKYT) CBS
Channel 56 (WDKY) FOX

Bowling Green, KY

Channel 13 (WBKO) ABC

Knoxville, TN

Channel 10 (WBIR) NBC
Channel 6 (WATE) ABC

Hazard, KY

Channel 57 (WYMT) CBS

Nashville, TN

Channel 5 (WTVF) CBS
Channel 6 (WATE) ABC

Louisville, KY

Channel 3 (WAVE) NBC
Channel 41 (WDRB) CBS
Channel 32 (WLKY) CBS
Channel 11 (WHAS) ABC

Other Closings and Delays

It may be necessary to close or delay the opening of facilities due to unforeseen circumstances such as pandemics, natural disasters, or building damage due to fire, tornado, mechanical issues, utility outages, or any potentially hazardous situation to employees and students. In these situations, the College President will confer with the college executive team, center directors, utility personnel, local first responders, and community partners to determine whether classes can be moved to another location or should be cancelled. These notifications will be executed by the College President or his designee in the same fashion as weather related notifications.

The VP of Administration or their designee will report full details of a facility closure, delay, or class cancellation for any emergency to the KCTCS Director of Safety and Emergency Services.

Reviewed: 4/11/2022, 5/10/2023: Format changes, 5/8/2024: Non-substantive changes