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Network failure at WMU impacting final exams

Posted at 7:41 AM, Apr 26, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-26 07:41:06-04

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — As if things weren’t already hectic enough around final exams, students and staff at Western Michigan University have been dealing with what the school is calling an “unprecedented computer network failure”.

The outage, which reportedly began around 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 25, has caused a slew of technical issues across campus and has prevented students from taking online exams, as well as turning in online assignments.

Jennifer Bott, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said the network failure was caused by equipment that is serviced via an outside vendor.

The university is working to restore all network services, Bott said, adding that some services, such as Elearning, email and the GoWMU portal, may be working for some users but that the network as a whole is still operating too slowly to accommodate a reliable connection.

The administration is asking WMU faculty members to be flexible and accommodate students who may have been impacted by the network outage.

Periodic updates are being posted to the university’s Facebook and Twitter accounts.