The University of Georgia has been closely monitoring the development of Hurricane Helene, which continues to intensify as it rapidly approaches landfall. Forecasters warn that this dangerous storm could bring heavy rain and high winds across the state, potentially reaching unprecedented levels here in the Athens area. Therefore, with the safety and security of our faculty, staff and students foremost in our minds, the main campus of the University of Georgia will be closed on Thursday, Sept. 26 and Friday, Sept. 27.

Further updates will be sent as they become available.

 

 

9/27 AT 12:36 PM

 

Dear Members of the School of Law Community:

I hope that you and your families weathered last night’s storm without incident.

Here is an update so you can plan for the days ahead:

  1. Main Campus remains closed today. Protocols are exactly the same as yesterday. Professors may hold classes virtually or may reschedule them entirely. We have received several reports of employees and students without power, which may affect the ability to hold synchronous classes today.
     
  2. Plan for normal weekend operations. That means the Law School and the Law Library will be accessible by swipe card beginning at 9:00 a.m., when the circulation desk will also open. Please note – this can change in the event the University decides to extend the campus closure (in the event of a power outage, for example). If plans change, you will receive another email.
    PLEASE REMEMBER: UGA EITS will conduct biannual network maintenance resulting in intermittent outages of campus Internet access and campus information systems (including telephones) on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, from 4 a.m. until midnight. More information is available at https://eits.uga.edu/stories/sept29_fallnetworkmaintenance/. Please plan accordingly.
     
  3. Plan for normal Monday operations. That means in-person classes and events. Just like this past Wednesday.
     
  4. Be safe today. Past experience has taught us that, even after a hurricane has passed, it is important to remain vigilant. Fallen trees can block roads, saturated branches can still fall, and facilities crews need ready access to help restore full operations.
     
  5. Show grace. We’re fortunate to have a dedicated, caring community whose members look out for each other. On more than one occasion, I’ve seen an employee or student come to the Law School and do their job even when I know that, privately, they’re struggling and prefer not to share it. This was a serious storm, and I know that we have students and colleagues with family and friends in hard-hit areas. So, as they (and we) dig out, please remember how simple acts of kindness and grace can help a member of our community. To that end:
    * The Emergency Fund is available for students acutely affected by the storm.      We are mindful that hurricanes can have individualized impacts (like a tree falling on an apartment or a car). And we are fortunate to have generous alumni/alumnae who have contributed to a fund to help students affected by emergencies like these. If you find yourself in that situation, please reach out to Dean Dennis or Ms. Tickles.
    * Employees who have sustained unique impacts from the hurricane should reach out to their direct supervisor. “Family first” is our mantra, and we will do what we can, with the resources at our disposal (and within University constraints) to help you.
     
  6. Thank Cam. “Who’s Cam?” you ask. Cam is one of our amazing Facilities Maintenance Workers. You might recognize him from the ground floor of Hirsch Hall where he’s omnipresent with his trademark eyeglasses. Cam drove into work today and walked the buildings with me to confirm that no tree or water damage had occurred. Cam’s dedication allowed me to send you this status report so you could plan for the days ahead. Cam represents the sort of quiet heroes who help make our community a special place. So, when you’re next here, if you see Cam – or any of the amazing Facilities workers – please make an extra effort to thank them for the quiet but essential work they do every day.

Take care and stay safe.

 

9/25 AT 7:58 PM

School of Law buildings will be closed on 9/26 and 9/27. We will look to reschedule any events and activities that were scheduled for these dates when operations return to normal. For those organizing or hosting events on these days, please reach out to any scheduled guests and registered attendees to ensure they are aware of UGA’s closure.

This includes the law library which will close at 12 a.m. tonight. Note: There will be no swipe card access on 9/26 and 9/27. We will monitor the situation and let you know if and when the library will reopen on Saturday, 9/27.

Regarding classes, consistent with the University's guidance, each faculty instructor will determine whether to hold their class online at the scheduled time, or post asynchronous lectures, or reschedule the classes. Do not be surprised if many classes are rescheduled.  This is for several reasons including accreditor rules, institution-wide demands on IT staff and other staff who may be personally affected by weather-related matters.

This closure also applies to our clinical programs, with one caveat as described. Under no circumstances should students be required to appear in person on campus (or anywhere else). Nor, as a general matter, should clinic faculty or staff come to campus or the clinic offices downtown. That said, we understand that clinical faculty or staff may have certain ethical duties to clients or courts that must be adhered to. If such matters can be rescheduled or conducted remotely, that should be your first course of action.

Whom should I contact if I have questions?  Students with class-specific questions should contact their professors. Students with more general questions should contact Dean Dennis or Ms. Tickles. Employees should contact their direct supervisors, most of whom are on the Crisis Response Group. 

With all of this being said, please be careful over the coming days, make sure your devices are charged and stay in touch with your individual communities.  

 


The safety of the law school community is our #1 priority. Please remember that your primary source for emergency news and information relating to the University of Georgia is emergency.uga.edu .

The law school will update its homepage and X (formerly Twitter) based on information from emergency.uga.edu and other UGA communications, including UGAAlert. 

As necessary, the law school will send emails to students, staff and faculty regarding law school specific impacts of any university-wide decisions. We will also utilize ugaLAWalert for texting law school specific messaging.

Faculty, staff and students at the law school are invited to sign up for this one-way texting notification system by following these instructions: Text “ugaLAWalert” to 877-804-2955. Please note that you must chose to opt-in to this service, and you can opt-out at any time. Please remember this texting feature does NOT take the place of your uga.edu email address that serves as the primary form of emergency communication.