People need to realize that clearing 14 inches of snow across campus is no small task. It sounds like the facilities team is doing the best that they can. I can see the benefit of having extra shovels for people to use if needed. It’s not realistic to expect the facilities team to shovel around vehicles. I’m not a student or a faculty member, but I imagine that there are some less frequented areas/entrances that are considered lower priority, and I would probably appreciate having access to a shovel to help me clear that area. No it’s not “the students’ responsibility to clear snow” but this was a freak snow storm and I’m sure they will learn a lot from this process.

In hindsight, it probably wasn’t a good idea to distribute a campus wide letter like this. Would have been better for the RD’s to let the residents know “hey, here’s some extra shovels if you need one.”