After two days of cancelled classes and a weekend, students returned to Missouri Southern to find campus conditions less than appealing.

Some students who fell on the icy sidewalks said the University did not take the necessary precautions. Amanda Stevenson, freshman elementary education major, said she has fallen five times on campus.

“They should have cancelled something because it’s just not safe,” she said. “I don’t even want to go to class now because it’s difficult. It’s a big inconvenience right before finals.”

Some students think the sidewalks’ conditions reflect poorly on Southern.

“I think that it’s horribly unprofessional and it casts the University in a light that is very amateur,” said Nathan Hurley, senior French major. “I think our activities fees should be spent on keeping us from having broken bones on campus.

“If they want to take more of my money for health fees, then they need to promote decent health by not attempting to kill me.”

Another student who said the conditions were not acceptable, Jessica Baker, freshman biology major, said the University put students at risk.

“It’s a danger to the students,” she said. “I can see how it would be difficult to get through all of the ice, but they should have at least put down some salt rocks.”

On the contrary, Bob Harrington, director of the Physical Plant, said there has been 1,000 pounds of ice melt applied to the sidewalks and parking lots.

“We are trying our best and moving as fast as we can,” Harrington said. “The problem is we’ve had five to six inches of sleet. I don’t think anyone realizes the magnitude of this situation. It’s a never-ending battle.”

Regardless of the Physical Plant’s efforts, one employee from the Physical Plant, Shawn Werberger, freshman business major, said he agreed the conditions were unsuitable for students trying to get to classes.

“They should have had us clean it up Friday and not (the day before classes). That’s why it’s so bad,” he said. “When it’s just snow, it’s easier to push out of the way, but we had it freezing then melting then freezing again. I’ve heard lots of people making negative comments, but it’s not the workers’ fault.”

Some students found the conditions to be inevitable. Ryan Shumaker, senior business management major, said everything is covered with ice and there isn’t much to be done.

“The (sidewalks) aren’t great, but what can you do?” he said, “The only difference from Friday morning to now is there’s not snow on top of it. It’s all packed down, seriously, it’s all ice.”