In Northeast Ohio, the weather during the colder seasons is truly unpredictable. One day, it’s 30 degrees and snowing, while the next day it’s 80 degrees and sunny. Considering it’s still autumn, snow came a lot earlier than many anticipated. To celebrate the first snowfall in University Heights, The Carroll News dug into the archives to pull past stories written about winter weather at John Carroll University.
A Dec. 1947 edition emphasized that no one can magically make snow disappear and everyone has to be ready for anything, including adapting to getting around in deep snow. JCU community members pushed for the university and city of University Heights to be more mindful of the street, sidewalk, driveway and parking lot conditions since many were struggling to navigate.
“The responsibility lies clearly with University Heights and the university to provide safer conditions on and around the campus,” it says. “It is recognized that winter-fighting equipment, the heavy, expensive kind, is not creating a storage problem for either the school or city, but neither are [they] completely helpless. We hope that this winter, the streets will be cleared just a little quicker, that the ice and deep snow on the walks and drives will be scraped away just a little sooner.”
JCU draws a lot of students from the Pittsburgh and Buffalo areas. A story from Dec. 1963 highlights road conditions on Interstate 90, a route that many students rely on to get to and from the university. This freeway, going eastbound between Angola, PA, and Buffalo, NY, was shut down due to the snow conditions.
Readers were informed that the Ohio and Pennsylvania turnpikes, Interstate 71 South and most of the Indiana turnpike were clear and these routes could be utilized for travel.
“Traffic officials suggest that those students confronted by the northeast weather situation listen to their radios before leaving for home,” it says. “It will make your trip safer and save much wasted time fighting the elements.”
That same advice applies to this day. In Nov. 2024, Interstate 90 was closed between Erie, PA and the New York border due to heavy snowfall. This made traveling around Thanksgiving difficult for many JCU students. In parts of Northeast Ohio, speeds were reduced to 45 mph.
In a Feb. 2008 issue, inclement weather conditions were a risk to everyone on campus, which included snow falling from roofs. A storm that happened just before this publication left 12 inches of snow on the campus building roofs. Pressure on the roofs caused both snow and icicles to fall on sidewalks, which often had pedestrian traffic.
Between the O’Malley Center and the Administration Building (now St. Ignatius Hall), sidewalks were closed due to ice and snow falling from roofs. This action was taken due to fear that students would get hurt. In addition, the breezeway to the Boler College of Business was closed. These were reopened once the snow and ice melted.
“The facilities department has an ice and snow management plan in which areas of campus that hold potential for snow or ice to fall are closed off with signs, rope and caution tape,” said Caitlin Huey-Burns, who was the campus editor. “The facilities department also puts snow piles near dangerous areas to block students from entering.”
Students were encouraged to adhere to the posted signs and stay away from areas that were closed.
Another story from the same issue talks about students expressing displeasure with the university not calling a snow day on the morning of Jan. 28, 2008, despite harsh weather and road conditions. John Day, the academic vice president who was responsible for making decisions about snow days, received several emails from disappointed students about this decision.“We just want people to know that we close in extreme weather conditions and we are concerned with the safety of students and faculty,” said Day. “We urge students and faculty to use their best judgment and make wise decisions.”
Day issued a statement to address the negative emails he received from students by saying, “As the day started, we thought we were in good company. The closest local school districts in Shaker, Cleveland and University Heights were all in session today. The other higher education institutions in the area also opened today.”
It was also stated that as the weather continued, evening classes ended up being cancelled. Day was open to taking advantage of the two and three-hour delays instead of making full-on cancellations.
A Jan. 2013 publication discussed how students were struggling to feel comfortable in their dorms amid freezing temperatures. Several claimed that despite submitting work orders about the lack of heating, nothing was being taken care of.
“The maintenance staff worked overtime Monday through Wednesday to address all heating concerns brought to their attention,” said Carol Dietz, who was the associate vice president of facilities. “The expectation is that JCU will be able to provide a minimum temperature of 67 degrees to all occupied spaces. When this criteria [sic] cannot be met, maintenance will provide temporary space heaters for rooms until we can get the particular heating issue resolved.”
Dietz gave resident students advice for navigating heat issues in their dorms, such as making sure windows are closed completely. In addition, furniture, bedding, clothing and other items need to be kept away from radiators so heat can be transferred into the rooms.
The unpredictability of the winter weather in Northeast Ohio keeps everyone on their toes. It is essential to be adaptable in ways such as wearing extra layers of clothing, being cautious when driving in snowy conditions and keeping an eye on upcoming weather forecasts.
