Suspension of Operations (CA)

Under normal circumstances, the University of Pennsylvania never stops operating. The University recognizes that there are times when classes may be canceled, and Wharton San Francisco (WSF) may be closed due to emergencies such as severe weather conditions.

Modifications of schedules may take the form of either a partial or full closing of campus operations. In either situation, staff members working in positions that are designated as “essential” are expected to remain at work if the closing occurs during their regular work schedule or to report to work if the closing announcement is made before their regular work schedule begins.

Wharton HR, in conjunction with the Executive Director of WSF, will designate the appropriate individuals as essential in advance. However, circumstances may require an immediate assignment of an essential status for a position and these designations will be made by the Executive Director.

Closure Decision-Making Process:

The determination of whether the San Francisco Campus should suspend normal operations due to a closure event will be made by the Executive Director of Wharton San Francisco (who lives in the Bay Area) in consultation with the Faculty Director of Wharton San Francisco and the Dean’s Office.

Communication:

Wharton San Francisco will announce a closing or other modification of schedules as follows:

  1. The Executive Director of Wharton San Francisco (or the Associate Director if the Executive Director is unavailable) would communicate to WSF Leadership.WSF leadership will follow the Notification Responsibility outlined below.
  2. Notification Responsibility
    1. WSF Executive Director:Will notify WSF Leadership Team & WSF staff.
    2. WSF Leadership: Will notify Program Leadership of all academic programs utilizing the WSF campus, to include:
      1. WEMBA
      2. Full-time MBA | Semester in San Francisco
    3. WSF Front Desk team: Will notify Open Space participants.
    4. WSF Operations team: Will notify bldg. management, security and vendors.
    5. WSF Events team: Will notify any impacted events.

Definitions & Details

Types of Closings:

  1. Complete Closing: A complete closing occurs when conditions warrant the cancellation of classes and closing of WSF, except for those providing essential services.
  2. Delayed Opening: Occasionally, circumstances will warrant a delay in the opening time of Wharton San Francisco.
  3. Early Closure: When there is a closing of WSF before the end of the workday.

Work Hours & Compensation due to Campus Closing:

  1. If WSF is closed after the workday starts, staff members who report to work are compensated for the time lost during the closing period as regular time worked. The time lost is not charged to paid time off balances and is not considered time worked for overtime calculation. Staff members who did not report to work should have their time charged to their paid time off balance (refer to Policy 607: Paid Time Off). If the staff member has no paid time off available, the time lost should be considered time off without pay.
  2. If WSF is closed before the scheduled workday starts, staff members are compensated for the entire workday. The time off should not be charged to paid time off balances or considered time worked for overtime calculation.
  3. If WSF is not closed, staff members who do not report to work may be charged paid time off, provided the supervisor approves the absence. If the staff member has no paid time off available, the staff member may not be compensated for that day. Sick leave may not be charged unless the staff member was out on sick leave before the emergency conditions arose.
  4. If WSF is not closed and a nonexempt staff member requests permission to be released before the end of his/her scheduled workday, the time lost should be charged to the staff member’s paid time off balance. If the staff member does not have any paid time off available, the hours not worked are without pay. If a closing announcement is made after the staff member’s request to leave early was approved, the lost time from the announced closing should be paid and not charged to paid time off balances. These hours are not considered time worked for overtime calculation.
  5. If WSF is not closed and a nonexempt staff member arrives late due to emergency conditions affecting transportation, the supervisor may excuse the lateness. Late arrival beyond reason should be charged to staff members’ paid time off balance. Pay deductions for exempt (monthly paid) staff must agree with Policy 307.3.
  6. Exempt staff members who work in positions designated as “essential” and who work when WSF is closed will be paid at their regular pay rate and will receive compensatory time equal to the time worked after the closing. The compensatory time must be used within ninety (90) calendar days from the date earned. Overtime compensation should be computed as usual.

Full Policies Available here: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/policies-and-procedures/policy-manual/other-policies/suspension-of-normal-operations

 WEMBA Detailed Operations Plan in the Event of a Suspension

What would be synchronous vs. asynchronous?

  • If the suspension is anticipated and would not affect our ability to hold classes on campus (e.g., weather), we would proceed with in-person classes as long as the students were able to arrive at the hotel before the closure event and we were able to house necessary faculty and staff in the hotel.
  • If the suspension is unanticipated and/or students, faculty, and staff were unable to come to campus, we would switch to synchronous Zoom courses with faculty teaching from home (or the hotel).
  • If the suspension comes with a mix of students, faculty, and staff on campus and remote, we would switch to hybrid delivery, with some people in-person and some on Zoom.  All of the classrooms used for this program are equipped for hybrid delivery.
  • There would be no fully asynchronous content.  However, all of our classrooms are equipped for recordings, and we would provide recordings for any students unable to attend class synchronously.
  • The decisions about in-person vs. Zoom for each course will be made by the WEMBA (or FTMBA) program leadership in consultation with the Executive Director of Wharton San Francisco and the Wharton Dean’s Office.

What if an instructor is unable to teach even though you want to continue classes?

  • If an instructor is unable to teach in-person, they would teach on Zoom from their home or hotel.
  • If an instructor is unable to teach on Zoom, we would treat it like an instructor illness or family emergency: the synchronous class would be cancelled and the instructor would decide the best method to make up the material (e.g., a recorded make-up session on Zoom or asynchronous content)

What if a student is unable to attend even though you want to continue classes?

  • The student would be provided Zoom access if unable to attend in-person.
  • If the student is unable to login to Zoom, we would treat it like a student illness or family emergency and provide the student access to the class recording, with the absence excused in terms of grading.

What if a staff member is unable to work even though you want to continue classes?

  • Wharton Computing arranges for back-up staff to support courses in case of a suspension of normal operations.
  • Wharton San Francisco arranges for back-up operational staff in case of a suspension of normal operations.
  • The WEMBA (or FTMBA) program leadership will stay in contact with these groups and, if they foresee a lack of essential support, we would switch to Zoom, or if necessary cancel classes.

Who is needed to support the operations during a suspension (roles, numbers of people).

  • Wharton Computing provides one person that could support technology needs in-person and one person that could support technology needs remotely
  • Wharton San Francisco provides catering support for meals, security, and other operational support.
  • WEMBA (or FTMBA) would provide one person on campus, generally the Class Manager; although, classes could proceed with the WEMBA (or FTMBA) person providing remote support.

Details about the expectations for these newly designated essential employees

  • Are they expected to come on site to work or remote?
    • If courses are held in-person, the Wharton Computing and Wharton San Francisco staff would need to be onsite.
    • If essential staff are unable to be onsite, we would switch to Zoom classes, which only require remote support from Wharton Computing,
  • How will they know?
    • The Director of the WEMBA program (or the Deputy Vice Dean or Vice Dean if the Director is unavailable) would communicate to the relevant people in those groups.  The WEMBA program leadership has a “call list” for the required contacts.
    • The Deputy Vice Dean of the FTMBA program (or Vice Dean or Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives and Communications) would handle communications for the SSF
    • The Executive Director of Wharton San Francisco will notify the WSF team and vendors. The WSF leadership team has a “call list” for the required contacts.
  • What activities will they be expected to perform?
    • Discussed above under “Who is needed to support the operations during a suspension”

How will this information be communicated to instructors/staff/students?

  • The Director of the WEMBA program will communicate to staff; the Deputy Vice Dean or Vice Dean will communicate to faculty; and the Class Manager will communicate to students.  If anyone is unavailable to provide the required communication, there is a backup person to provide the communication.  The Dean’s Office can also provide support by sending communications to any of these groups.
  • The Deputy Vice Dean of the FTMBA program (or Vice Dean or Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives and Communications) would handle all communications for the SSF.  The Dean’s Office can also provide support by sending communications to any of these groups.
  • The Executive Director of Wharton San Francisco will notify the WSF team and vendors. The WSF leadership team has a “call list” for the required contacts.
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