College Closing Information

If there is inclement weather such as a blizzard or ice storm, DMACC students, faculty and staff can monitor the following media announcements for possible college closing information. (This page is linked on the DMACC.edu homepage in the blue bar on the right hand side of the page.)

INTERNET

DMACC Homepage: www.dmacc.edu/
KCCI: www.kcci.com/
WHO: www.whotv.com/
WOI: www.woi-tv.com/

PHONE

Ankeny (515) 964-6200
Boone (515) 432-7203
Carroll (712) 792-1755
Newton (641) 791-3622
Urban (515) 244-4226
West (515) 633-2407

RADIO

WOI-AM 640 Ames
WOI-FM 90.1 Ames
KASI-AM 1430 Ames
KWBG-AM 1590 Boone
KCIM-AM 1380 Carroll
KKRL-FM 93.7 Carroll
WHO-AM 1040 Des Moines
KPSZ-AM 940 Des Moines
KIOA-FM 93.3 Des Moines
KKDM-FM 107 Des Moines
KGGO-FM 94.9 Des Moines
KRNT-AM 1350 Des Moines
KSTZ-FM 102.5 Des Moines
KMDX-FM 100.3 Des Moines
KJJY-FM 92.5 Des Moines
KJJY-FM 92.5 Des Moines
KHKI-FM 97.3 Des Moines
KVJZ-FM 106.3 Des Moines
KRKQ-FM 98.3 Des Moines
KLRX-FM 96.1 Des Moines
KLTI-FM 104.1 Des Moines
KGRN-AM 1410 Grinnell
KGRA-FM 98.9 Jefferson
KNIA-AM 1320 Knoxville
KCOB-AM 1280 Newton
KLVN-FM 95.9 Newton
KDLS-AM 1310 Perry/Jefferson
KDLS-FM 101.7 Perry/Jefferson
KRDB-FM 106.3 Des Moines

TELEVISION

WOI-TV CH. 5 Ames
KCCI-TV CH. 8 Des Moines
WHO-TV CH. 13 Des Moines

Live Radar Image from KCCI.com

DMACC is a proud sponsor of
KCCI's WeatherNow --
updated weather 24 hours a day on KCCI 8.2, Mediacom Ch. 247, and on the web.

VOICE MAIL

Faculty and staff may access their voice mail box from home to hear a broadcast message if the college campus has been closed.

There are no exact guidelines for college closing in terms of inches of snow since many factors including time of day, total snow fall, wind, visibility, temperature, etc., all affect this decision.

DMACC gives very serious consideration to inclement weather and is committed to making decisions to close the college as soon as possible. We monitor weather conditions continuously in advance of winter storms and target making decision to close by 6:00 AM for day classes and 4:00 PM for evening classes. However, weather conditions can change very quickly for the worse or the better, and it may not always be possible to make a closing decision by these targeted times. Weather forecasts can be inaccurate in predicting the severity of winter storms. Consequently, the decision to close a campus is based more on actual weather conditions, current Doppler radar and immediate forecasts rather than on forecasts more than 4 hours in advance. We understand that individual circumstances such as health, childcare, rural roads, distance from college, etc. can vary greatly among students and staff. It is always our goal to provide safe learning conditions as well as provide students the opportunity to complete their classes on a timely basis. We want to provide the opportunity for students to attend. The final decision to attend college classes can only be made by the individual student based on their specific extenuating circumstances that may make it unsafe for them to travel. During adverse weather, the DMACC faculty is considerate of students who are unable to attend classes due to unique extenuating circumstances.

The Physical Plant Director will make the decision for closing day time classes for all college sites in Polk County (Ankeny, Urban, West, Transportation Institute, Success Center). All Polk County sites will close together. During evening and weekend classes, the Dean of the Evening and Weekend College will make the closing decision for Ankeny. The Provosts of the Boone, Carroll, and Newton campuses determine independently if college classes will be closed at their locations. If the Boone Campus closes, the Career Academy in Ames will also close.

If a college campus closes, all classes and events occurring on that campus will be closed. Credit and non-credit classes held off campus will abide by the class location's decision to close.

If classes are canceled, employees and students should leave campus as soon as possible and/or should not come to the college. This allows for snow removal to take place more effectively. The exception is if your supervisor requests you to remain at work or to come in to work.

During adverse weather, local TV and radio stations are generally overwhelmed with school closing announcements. Consequently, these stations will only make abbreviated announcements for each organization and will not announce special events or other non-typical events at DMACC affected by the closing. Please inform all attendees of such special or non-traditional events of this policy so they can react appropriately during inclement weather.

View our School Closing Procedures