Students all over John Carroll’s campus excitedly read the news on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 29, that classes were cancelled for the following day. Although relieved to have a day off of classes, many were concerned at the reason for this: a record low temperature for that day in over 100 years.

Officials of University Heights and the greater Cleveland area implored residents to stay safe as temperatures dropped dangerously low.

Cleveland.com reported that the city low of negative three degrees did not beat the record of negative four degrees, set in 1873.

Throughout Northeast Ohio, buildings were closed and services were cancelled. In Cleveland, trash pickups were even postponed.

On John Carroll’s campus, many students were buzzing about the possibility of classes being cancelled.

At 2:04 p.m. on Jan. 29, students received an email saying “JCU Weather Alert: Wednesday’s classes/activities are cancelled. A delayed start is anticipated for Thursday. Visit jcu.edu for more information.”

This email was followed minutes later by a more formal email at 2:18 p.m. from the Provost and Academic Vice-President’s office, telling the campus the same message as earlier, also noting that the Community Forum on the upcoming HLC visit was rescheduled to Feb. 6.

The news was received with happiness and surprise.

Junior biology major Thaija Vincent commented, “John Carroll has never officially cancelled class in my time here, and honestly, I wasn’t sure if they were actually going to do it. I was relieved and really glad when I got the news.”

Indeed, the school has not cancelled a day of classes due to weather-related incidents in several years.

Although on Jan. 2, 2018, JCU offices closed early at 1 p.m. due to inclement weather, classes had not yet begun, so the majority of students were not at all affected by the closing.

Sophomore Hamlin Hall resident Bella Statnick noted, “I’m really glad John Carroll cancelled classes to keep everyone safe.”

On-campus residents weren’t the only ones glad to get the day off. “As a student who lives off campus, I was nervous to have to drive or walk to school in such cold weather. I’m really happy John Carroll cancelled. You never know what could have happened,” said senior Olivia Todorowski.

JCU kept everyone safe by encouraging students and faculty to stay indoors. According to Almanac.com, just 30 minutes of exposed skin in that temperature could lead to frostbite.

A student at the University of Iowa was found dead early on the morning of Jan. 29, due to the cold weather, according to The New York Times. Faculty at JCU were looking to ensure nothing of that kind happened on  campus.

Other than staying safe, JCU residents were excited to have a day off of their busy course loads.

“It was nice to have a day to relax and not worry about school,” said junior Christian Kincaid, a resident assistant in Campion Hall.