{
  "id": "2026-02-22-harvard-university-blizzard-remote",
  "slug": "harvard-university-blizzard-remote-2026-02-22",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Harvard University",
    "shortName": "Harvard",
    "state": "MA",
    "type": "private-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "MessageMe / Harvard Alerts"
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2026-02-22",
    "type": "winter-storm",
    "endDate": "2026-02-23",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "headline": "College and FAS classes remote for blizzard and state of emergency",
    "summary": "When Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey declared a statewide state of emergency ahead of the [historic February 22-24, 2026 blizzard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_2026_North_American_blizzard), Harvard moved most of its schools to online classes for Monday, February 23. Harvard College and the Kennedy, Law, Divinity, Design, Public Health and Extension schools held classes [online](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/2/23/harvard-snowday-classes-remote/), a sharp reversal from the previous month, when Harvard had drawn [student criticism for keeping College classes in person](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/1/26/college-no-snowday/) during a 23-inch storm.",
    "outcome": "Most Harvard schools moved Monday, February 23, 2026 classes online amid forecasts of 18-25 inches of snow and 75 mph wind gusts; Harvard Business School held in-person classes but sent non-essential staff remote. Normal operations resumed afterward.",
    "resolution": "resolved",
    "headlinePublic": "College and FAS classes remote for blizzard and state of emergency"
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "February 22, 2026 FAS operational email for Monday, February 23 remote operations",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "Dear colleagues,\n\nFollowing the earlier message from the University and in light of the Governor’s declaration of a state of emergency due to extreme weather conditions, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) will move to fully remote operations tomorrow, Monday, February 23.\n\nNo Harvard College or FAS-based Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) classes will be held in person. Faculty should instead plan to either teach remotely, reschedule their class, or make alternative arrangements to cover course material. Faculty should communicate directly with students regarding their plans and expectations. Graduate students should check in with their respective programs regarding closures and schedules. Course heads should guide instructional support staff, including TFs, TAs, and CAs on expectations for sections and labs. For information about the Division of Continuing Education (DCE), please visit their website.\n\nAll non-essential employees should not report to campus and should work remotely if they can do so effectively. If their work cannot be performed remotely, they may take an excused absence pursuant to the Inclement Weather Policy. FAS staff members who need to significantly alter their schedules due to conditions in their local area or due to other personal circumstances (such as dependent care needs) should be in contact with their supervisors. In such circumstances, staff members who are unable to work remotely should enter personal or vacation time in PeopleSoft. Additional guidance can be found on the FAS HR website.\n\nEssential employees should report to work as scheduled unless their supervisor or department leadership instructs otherwise. Essential personnel who find themselves in a specific circumstance that would make travel unsafe must contact their supervisor as soon as possible to obtain approval to be absent.\n\nAdditional details and specific guidance are outlined below.\n\n- Residential dining services will proceed as normal.\n- The Student Center at Harvard Griffin GSAS will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a limited dining menu.\n- Please monitor the Harvard Library and the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture websites for updates about hours and closures.\n- Please be advised that the City of Cambridge parking ban began at 9:00 a.m. earlier today. Harvard garages are open to the local community for parking. Shuttle service will be adjusted during the storm and may be suspended during periods when snow accumulation eclipses 1–2 inches per hour or winds exceed 30–40 mph. Please refer to the live shuttle tracker for estimated arrival times and use caution when navigating snowy conditions.\n\nThe safety of our students, faculty, researchers, and staff remains our top priority. Please continue to monitor harvard.edu/emergency for updates.\n\nThank you for your flexibility, and please stay safe and warm.\n\nSincerely,\n\nMary Ann Bradley\n\nInterim Dean for Administration and Finance\n\nFaculty of Arts and Sciences",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://www.fas.harvard.edu/news/2026/02/winter-weather-update-february-23-2026",
      "sourceDescription": "FAS Winter Weather Update February 23, 2026 (Mary Ann Bradley email)",
      "annotations": [
        "Official FAS winter-weather email recovered from fas.harvard.edu; earlier Crimson reconstruction is superseded.",
        "The reversal is notable: a month earlier Harvard kept College classes in person during a 23-inch storm and was criticized; this time a state of emergency and 18-25 inch forecast pushed nearly all schools online.",
        "GROWTH NIGHT flip 2026-09-21. Official FAS email. Live curl 403 Akamai. Dual-blind open_page + r.jina wording-equal after NBSP collapse. Product Dear colleagues through Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Curly apostrophe and en-dashes preserved. Not a MessageMe EN."
      ],
      "characterCount": 3003,
      "confidence": "high",
      "lastUpdated": "2026-09-21"
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "follow-up",
      "timestampApprox": "Sunday evening, February 22, 2026",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceUrl": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/2/23/harvard-snowday-classes-remote/",
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from The Harvard Crimson",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 3,
      "type": "update",
      "timestampApprox": "February 22, 2026 HLS operational email for Monday remote operations",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "February 22, 2026\n\nDear Members of the HLS Community,\n\nIn conjunction with Harvard University officials, Harvard Law School has been closely monitoring major snowstorm that is expected to arrive in the Greater Boston area this evening and continue throughout the day tomorrow.\n\nAs Harvard’s Executive Vice President, Meredith Weenick, noted in her message earlier this afternoon, a blizzard warning has been issued for all of Massachusetts, with an estimated 18 to 24 inches of snow expected in greater Boston, with heavy rates of snowfall and high winds. Although accurate forecasts in these conditions are challenging, the Monday morning and evening commutes throughout the region will likely be significantly affected, and Governor Maura Healey has urged that the public stay off the roads during the snowstorm period.\n\nTo support the safety of our community, Harvard Law School will be shifting to remote operations on Monday.\n\nAccordingly, please note the following important changes in our operations tomorrow:\n\n- Classes scheduled for tomorrow (Monday) will be shifted to Zoom, although some faculty may instead choose to schedule a makeup class during the Law School’s makeup teaching block. Deans Claypoole, Burns, and Plunkett will be following up shortly with additional information for instructors and students should be on the lookout for follow-on communications directly from their instructors.\n\n- Managers will be in touch with essential on-campus staff regarding their work schedules.\n\n- Nonessential staff should plan to work remotely if they are able to do so or they should refer to the Inclement Weather Policy to take an excused absence if their work cannot be performed remotely. If they cannot work remotely due to other circumstances, they should contact their managers about taking paid time off (vacation or personal day).\n\n- Clinical instructors are encouraged to contact their students to provide direction on clinical supervision, court appearances, client meetings, or other clinical practice engagement tomorrow.\n\n- Event organizers should shift to a remote format or reschedule their events for an alternate day.\n\n- Although Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) will significantly curtail their operations at HLS tomorrow, some food services will be maintained to support residents of HLS housing and essential staff who will be on campus. Only the Harkness Dining Room will be open for breakfast and lunch tomorrow from 7:30 am – 2:30 pm. No HUDS outlets will be open for dinner. Please plan accordingly.\n\n- ITS will be available to provide remote technical support and will be reachable via phone (617-495-0722) or through the ServiceNow platform. The on-campus ITS service desk will be closed tomorrow.\n\n- HLS Library Services will be closed on Monday; however, law students will have access to the Langdell Library’s 2nd floor for studying.\n\nThank you for your patience and cooperation as we shift to and implement remote operations tomorrow. Please watch for any additional communications from HLS and the University and stay safe during the storm!\n\nBest,\n\nTracee\n\nL. Tracee Whitley\nDean for Administration\nHarvard Law School",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "confidence": "high",
      "sourceUrl": "https://hls.harvard.edu/feb-22-winter-weather-update/",
      "sourceDescription": "HLS Winter Weather Update February 22, 2026 (L. Tracee Whitley email)",
      "annotations": [
        "GROWTH NIGHT extra 2026-09-21. Official HLS email. Dual-curl HTTP 200 HTML 603488 bytes identical sha256 a0f85fe7cebd2c8b79d9635ed5586c4825930f35b29476866a39da3012d45fa7. Flattened wording EQUAL to packaged extract. Same blizzard as FAS seq 1, not a distinct incident. Existing reconstructed HBS seq 2 remains unconfirmed."
      ],
      "characterCount": 3168,
      "lastUpdated": "2026-09-21"
    }
  ],
  "context": "Harvard's response to the [February 2026 North American blizzard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_2026_North_American_blizzard) was shaped by the backlash to its decision a month earlier. In late January 2026, Harvard had kept College classes in person during a 23-inch storm, drawing [student complaints that it was 'the wrong call.'](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/1/26/college-no-snowday/) When Governor Maura Healey declared a statewide state of emergency ahead of the February blizzard, with forecasts of 18-25 inches of snow and wind gusts up to 75 mph in Cambridge, Harvard moved [most schools online](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/2/23/harvard-snowday-classes-remote/) for Monday, February 23, including Harvard College and the Kennedy, Law, Divinity, Design, Public Health and Extension schools. Harvard Business School was the notable exception, holding in-person classes while sending non-essential staff remote. The episode illustrates how a prior controversy and an official state-of-emergency declaration can shift an institution's weather posture from in-person to remote within weeks.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "Harvard moved most schools online for Monday, February 23, 2026 after Massachusetts declared a statewide state of emergency for the historic blizzard",
    "The decision reversed Harvard's controversial late-January 2026 choice to keep College classes in person during a 23-inch storm",
    "Harvard Business School remained the outlier with in-person classes while sending non-essential staff remote, showing decentralized faculty-level weather decisions"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Most Harvard Schools to Move Classes Online Following Massachusetts State of Emergency - The Harvard Crimson",
      "url": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/2/23/harvard-snowday-classes-remote/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "'It's the Wrong Call': Students React to College's Decision to Hold In-Person Classes During Snowstorm - The Harvard Crimson",
      "url": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/1/26/college-no-snowday/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "February 2026 North American blizzard - Wikipedia",
      "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_2026_North_American_blizzard",
      "type": "reference"
    },
    {
      "title": "Winter Weather Update: February 23, 2026 (Harvard FAS)",
      "url": "https://www.fas.harvard.edu/news/2026/02/winter-weather-update-february-23-2026",
      "type": "official-archive"
    },
    {
      "title": "February 22 Winter Weather Update (Harvard Law School)",
      "url": "https://hls.harvard.edu/feb-22-winter-weather-update/",
      "type": "official-archive"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "blizzard",
    "winter-storm",
    "snow",
    "massachusetts",
    "cambridge",
    "state-of-emergency",
    "remote-classes"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-28",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-09-21",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}