Snow blanketed campus Thursday night, forcing the cancellation of evening events and hampering travel across central Iowa.

About 1 inch of snow had fallen in Ames by 11 p.m. Thursday, and up to 9 inches more was expected by this afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

The question on the minds of ISU students, though, was simple: Would classes be canceled?

“They’re too stubborn to cancel school,” said Dane Hopf, freshman in electrical engineering. “They never cancel unless it is extreme weather.”

Warren Madden, vice president of Business and Finance, said there are no certain criteria to determine whether to cancel classes.

“It’s a combination of things,” he said. “Between the weather and what’s going on at the university, we decide if classes should be canceled or [if we should] partially close the university.”

Leaving the final say to ISU President Martin Jischke, Madden said ISU administrators, the Department of Public Safety, local law enforcement agencies, road maintenance and the university’s calendar of events are all consulted before a decision is made.

Madden said he is frequently asked why the university continues to operate while other schools and businesses close.

“The majority of students live within the immediate proximity of campus, in addition to CyRide moving around campus,” he said.

With most students able to either walk to class or catch CyRide, Madden said things normally run smoothly.

“We try to run the schedule and bring in extra buses if they are needed to help with a route,” CyRide dispatcher Jenny Bethurem said. “The only other thing that we may do differently is put extra containers of grit on the buses for the steps so that they do not get too slippery.”

Madden said a decision must be reached by 4:30 a.m. the morning of the cancellation in order to notify the media, faculty, students and staff by 6 a.m.

Iowa State has closed five times since 1994 due to inclement weather, Madden said.

“We are pretty conservative,” he said. “We don’t make up days that are canceled. Generally, if people can move around we will continue to operate.”

Jake Poremba, freshman in industrial engineering, said for him, snow isn’t the most daunting obstacle when confronting winter weather.

“It’s not that bad for people except for walking on campus,” he said. “It affects people when it gets really cold and the wind’s blowing.”

Poremba, resident of Knapp Hall in the Towers Residence Association, said the walk to campus can be taxing on cold, blustery days. “I take the bus more often,” he said.

The Ames Public Works Department put a snow ordinance into effect at 10 p.m. Thursday to remind Ames residents to move their cars so that streets can be cleared. Once the ordinance has been put into effect, cars will be ticketed at the impound lot.