Welcome 4th South

January was an interesting month. Campuswide we had only around 225 students, as many students traveled for J-Term. We hosted about 25 students from Durham for each J-Term while some of our Morganton students visited the Durham campus. Our hall hosted 2 Durham students, where they resided in host rooms in our hall. J-Term 1 was very relaxing giving students a break from the academic rigor of a normal semester. This allowed students to enjoy shorter days, and more time with friends. J-Term 2 began like any other, but we experienced a twist with the weather when the forecast called for icing throughout NC. This is when I learned something about the Morganton campus for the first time. Our HVAC is NOT connected to the backup generators, so if the campus loses power the Res Hall has NO Heat/AC/Air Flow. This was surprising, and this is one of the reasons the school made the decision to close the Morganton campus during the expected ice storm and send everyone home. Most, if not all, CCs remained. Although it was dangerous walking around campus, the power in the Res Hall was not impacted. Just when we were hoping to receive students back onto campus, forecasts began calling for another winter storm. I'm facing out my winter at this very moment watching the snowfall as I write this update. It's cold outside but beautiful. As of now, we look forward to receiving students back on Tuesday with the Res Hall opening at 12 noon.