As a result of the latest snowstorm, facilities and public safety staff members spent countless hours trying to keep our campus safe and accessible to all students and faculty members, something this board applauds.

Facilities workers had been working throughout the day and well into the night of the snowstorm to clear the snow, making the campus accessible to the community. While classes were cancelled and the campus closed, they continued to work diligently in order to pave the way for a delayed opening on March 14.

While most dining areas on campus were closed due to the nor’easter, Sherman dining hall remained open and fully staffed, providing facilities workers, public safety members and students with breakfast, lunch and dinner. If Sherman did not stay open, some students might not have had easy access to meals, since all first-years and a majority of sophomores live in suite-style or traditional-style housing, not apartments that are fully equipped with kitchens.

In a March 15 email, University President Ron Liebowitz thanked the Brandeis community for all of the hard work during the snowstorm, writing, “I want to commend our hard-working staff for their exemplary work in keeping our campus accessible, safe, and running.”

While some students complained about the loud noises in the early hours of the morning and at night from the snow plows, this board recognizes that this was a necessary cost to clearing the snow, as waiting for it to pile up throughout the night would not have been a feasible approach to maintaining clear paths around campus.

Brandeis facilities and public safety staff members were thanked at a gathering on Monday, March 19 in the International Lounge for being “loyal, capable, and dedicated employees,” as Liebowitz wrote in his email.