Campus Alert Archive
Harvard

After a Snow-Day Backlash, Harvard Sends Most Schools Online for the Blizzard

MAwinter stormemergency notificationmedium confidence

When Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey declared a statewide state of emergency ahead of the historic February 22-24, 2026 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, a sharp reversal from the previous month, when Harvard had drawn student criticism for keeping College classes in person during a 23-inch storm.

Alerts
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Response
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Killed
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Institution
Harvard University
Private R1 · MA
MessageMe / Harvard Alerts
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from The Harvard Crimson253 chars
Following the statewide state of emergency, Harvard College and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences will hold classes online on Monday, Feb. 23. Non-essential staff should work remotely. Please avoid travel as the blizzard moves through the region.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed from Crimson reporting; the move to online classes following the state of emergency is confirmed for the College and named graduate schools, but the exact university message wording was not recovered.
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.
FOLLOW-UPEmail
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from The Harvard Crimson168 chars
Harvard Business School will continue to hold classes in person on Monday, Feb. 23; however, non-essential HBS staff are instructed to work remotely given the forecast.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed from Crimson reporting that HBS was the outlier holding in-person classes; the precise HBS message text was not recovered.
Even within a single university, schools split: HBS kept classes in person while sending non-essential staff home, showing decentralized weather decision-making across Harvard's faculties.
Context

Background

Harvard's response to the 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.' 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 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.
Analysis

Key Findings

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
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.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Student Paper
    Most Harvard Schools to Move Classes Online Following Massachusetts State of Emergency - The Harvard Crimson
    thecrimson.com
  2. Student Paper
    'It's the Wrong Call': Students React to College's Decision to Hold In-Person Classes During Snowstorm - The Harvard Crimson
    thecrimson.com
  3. reference
    February 2026 North American blizzard - Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
Tags
blizzardwinter-stormsnowmassachusettscambridgestate-of-emergencyremote-classes
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion