Students built snowmen, sipped on hot chocolate, and enjoyed extended deadlines after more than nine inches of snow blanketed the Philadelphia area on Monday.
The University suspended normal operations on Jan. 26 amid safety concerns regarding winter weather. Per University policy, classes were not held in person, and only essential services — including Penn’s Division of Public Safety, Dining Services, Facilities and Real Estate Services, the University of Pennsylvania Health System, and student health services — remained open.
While some professors chose to record online lectures for students to watch asynchronously, most decided to cancel classes altogether. According to University policy, students are not required to attend class, either in person or virtually, when operations are suspended.
In place of attending classes, students described how they enjoyed their time off in interviews and statements to The Daily Pennsylvanian.
College sophomore Jackson Barnes described his experience sledding at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in a statement to the DP.
“When it snowed, I knew my friends and I had to check out sledding at the Art Museum!” Barnes wrote. “We showed up with no sled, but still managed to hit the slopes (I mean the options were endless). We saw cardboard boxes, trash can lids, boogie boards, air mattresses, you name it. We took a liking to cardboard, running up and down the famous rocky steps for an hour with our makeshift sleds.”
In an interview with the DP, Engineering junior Brandon Yan said that while he stayed inside because he didn’t like the snow, he appreciated having “more chill time” without classes and having homework deadlines moved back.
Yan added that Penn’s dining halls were “super packed” due to restaurant closures near campus.
College junior Maggie Zhang also told the DP that because she does not have classes on Mondays, she “didn’t really care” about the suspension of normal University operations. Still, she mentioned that one of her assignment deadlines was pushed back as a result of the storm.
Zhang told the DP that she spent the snow day outside enjoying the cold weather and the company of her friends.
“This morning, I tried to build a snowman,” Zhang said. “Then we bought hot chocolate.”
College sophomore Zinnia Zheng — a West Coast native — also told the DP that she ventured outside because she “never experienced a snowstorm before.”
“It was so special to take advantage of such a cherished tradition,” Barnes wrote while describing his experience sledding. “The icing on the cake, though, was our final run. We borrowed someone’s real tube, flying down all the steps in seconds. I would call this a perfect snow day.”
On Monday, Penn announced that normal University operations will remain suspended on Jan. 27 due to continued winter weather conditions.
Senior reporter Amy Liao covers clubs and societies and can be reached at liao@thedp.com. At Penn, she studies philosophy, politics, and economics. Follow her on X @amyliiao.
