Revised 2026-01-14

When the Missouri State University-West Plains (MSU-WP) campus is closed or classes cancelled or delayed due to an emergency or inclement weather situations, an official announcement will be issued through Missouri State Alert, posted at the top of the MSU-WP homepage, published on the university’s main social media channels, and through the news media (television and radio). Responsibility for inclement weather procedures is shared by administrative operations, university marketing and communications, and the chancellor.

Students should use their own good judgment regarding travel when weather conditions are questionable. Students do not need to call the administrative offices but should contact their instructors if they cannot attend classes because of weather conditions. Faculty members are encouraged to allow make-up work for classes missed because of weather conditions.

In extreme weather conditions, classes may be canceled. Faculty, staff and students will be notified about cancellations through Missouri State-West Plains communications via email, campus closure notices on the homepage and text messages initiated by Director of Business and Support Services and/or the Chancellor through MSU Dispatch via Missouri State Alert. For information regarding the status of Missouri State-West Plains classes, Mountain Grove Extended Campus classes, and Missouri State-Springfield Outreach classes, call the Missouri State University Safety and Emergency Services Center at 417-836-5509.

Students should use their own good judgment regarding travel when weather conditions are questionable. Students do not need to call the administrative offices but should contact their instructors if they cannot attend classes because of weather conditions. Faculty members are encouraged to allow make-up work for classes missed because of weather conditions.

When the Mountain Grove Extended campus is cancelled and the West Plains campus is open, the cancellation will be posted to the Mountain Grove Facebook page.

Unless and until an official “classes canceled” announcement is issued, faculty members are expected to hold classes as usual, and non-faculty employees should assume that activities will continue as normal.

If a faculty member is unable to hold a scheduled seated class, they should notify students as soon as possible through both Brightspace and email. Faculty should continue to deliver instruction in accordance with their approved remote class policy. Additionally, faculty must notify their dean and the Office of Academic Affairs whenever they are unable to hold class as scheduled.

If a decision is made to close the University or to cancel day classes, details will be posted on the Missouri State-West Plains website and sent out via Missouri State Alert by 7:00 a.m.

Decisions to cancel day classes due to inclement weather do not automatically apply to evening classes or to second- or third-shift operations. A separate decision regarding evening classes and later shifts will be made by 3:00 p.m. When classes are canceled and/or offices are closed, the University will issue an official announcement through local television and radio, the University’s main social media accounts, and the Missouri State–West Plains homepage at https://wp.missouristate.edu/.

Essential employees are required to report during inclement weather. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action. When the University remains open, missed work time due to weather is not considered an excused absence; employees may use paid leave or will be unpaid for the time missed.

The University may operate under one of the following statuses:

1. Remote learning; offices open – Classes move to remote delivery while offices remain open. Applies to faculty and students; non-faculty employees report to work.
2. Remote learning; offices closed – Classes move to remote delivery and offices close. Applies to all employees except those designated as essential.
3. University closed – Both classes and offices are canceled. Applies to all employees except those designated as essential.

If classes are moved to remote learning, but offices remain open, faculty will follow the University’s remote learning procedures, while non-faculty employees must report to work as scheduled.

If offices are closed, non-faculty employees should not report unless they have been designated as essential personnel or are specifically instructed to do so. Essential personnel are designated by the Chancellor, and major administrators are responsible for ensuring that those employees receive notification.

If no announcement is made, all employees and students should assume that the University is operating normally.

Inclement Weather Procedures for Day Classes

The decision to close the University or to cancel day classes will be made by 5:30 a.m. Listed below is the sequence of events that should be followed:

Should conditions appear to warrant possible cancellation/closure of day classes or delay of morning classes, the director of facility operations will contact the associate vice chancellor of administrative operations by 5:00 a.m. The associate vice chancellor of administrative operations will contact the Chancellor by 5:30 a.m. Once the decision to cancel classes has been made, the associate vice chancellor of administrative operations will notify the director of facility operations and the associate vice chancellor of marketing and communications. Notifications will take place as outlined in the Weather Notification communication procedures.

If classes are officially canceled because of weather, every effort will be made to maintain services in the following operations:

• Residence Life
• Food Services

If classes are delayed in the morning, every effort will be made to maintain services in the following operations:

• Residence Life
• Food Services

In the event of a delay, Physical Plant staff will open the Lybyer Hall building at 7 a.m. regular time so students who did not get the message about classes being delayed will have a place to go until all classroom buildings are open. Physical Plant staff will put signs on all other classroom building doors indicating that classes are postponed and Lybyer Hall is open for student use until classes resume. The Information Technology Services department will provide supervision for the open computer lab.

When the decision has been made to delay classes, opening times will be coordinated with the class schedule.

Inclement Weather Procedures for Evening Classes

Since the decision to cancel day classes due to inclement weather does not pertain to evening classes, a separate decision will be made later in the day.

The following procedures will be followed:

1. Between 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m., the director of facility operations will contact the associate vice chancellor of administrative operations concerning the condition of the parking lots and their possible availability during the late afternoon and evening hours. Information from the National Weather Bureau and the Missouri Department of Transportation concerning road conditions and impending weather changes also will be reviewed.

2. At 1:30 p.m., the associate vice chancellor of administrative operations will consult with the chancellor to determine the status of evening classes. Once the decision to cancel EVENING classes has been made, the associate vice chancellor of administrative operations will contact the associate vice chancellor marketing and communications. Notifications will take place as outlined in the Weather Notification communication procedures SPECIFICALLY DENOTING “EVENING CLASSES ONLY.”

The University reserves the right to alter its decision if weather conditions change during the afternoon.

Inclement Weather Procedures for Mountain Grove Extended Campus

Whenever classes are canceled or delayed at the West Plains campus, they will also be canceled or delayed at the Mountain Grove campus.

Day Classes: A decision on day classes will be announced by 7 a.m.

Evening Classes: A decision on evening classes will be announced by 3 p.m.

Weekend Closings/Cancelations

In case of inclement weather on Saturday or Sunday and the Garnett Library closes, or an event is canceled; the responsible department will contact the associate vice chancellor of marketing and communications concerning the closing. The information will be sent to Ozark Radio Network (5 stations) and E-Communications (3 stations) and posted to the main website.

“Emergency Operations Personnel” List

The following University personnel are required to attend work when the University is closed during a time when it would otherwise be open:

Business and Support Services

• Director of Facility Operations
• Physical plant personnel (expected to report for normal shift)

Student Services

• Residence Life Manager
• Resident Assistants (RAs)
• Dining Services provider

Weather Notification Communication Procedure

Once the status of Missouri State-West Plains has been determined, the following steps will be taken:

1. The associate vice chancellor of marketing and communications will post the status of Missouri State-West Plains, Mountain Grove Extended Campus and Missouri State Outreach classes on the Missouri State-West Plains homepage.
2. If Missouri State-West Plains classes are canceled or campuses are closed due to inclement weather

• The associate vice chancellor of marketing and communications will contact the web and media services specialist and contact the local radio stations and Springfield television stations.
• The web and media services specialist will post a message on the Missouri State-West Plains Web site.
• The associate vice chancellor of administrative operations will send a message using the Missouri State Alert system. In the event the campus is closed,
• The administrative assistant responsible for main phone operations will activate the “campus is closed due to inclement weather” message on the main phone (417) 255-7255 voicemail.

When the decision is made to cancel or delay Missouri State-West Plains classes, the Mountain Grove and Outreach program will follow the same procedure.