Students who looked out of their windows Sunday to see the sleet and snow may have thought the winter carnival did not sound like a good idea. Neither did the organizers.

Organizers felt they had to cancel the outdoor events Sunday after they looked outside and saw the weather, said Ellen King, the director of student events at Syracuse University. Indoor events, such as the Campus Cabaret, continued.

The decision was not made solely by organizers at SU but also by others, such as those in charge of the horse and carriage rides, who felt it would not be safe to give rides Sunday, King said.

All of the events ran and were successful Saturday, including horse and carriage rides and a DanceWorks performance, King said. She did not blame students for not fully participating on Saturday, either.

“I think a lot of the students looked out of their windows and said ‘no thanks ’ ” King said.

The snow sculpture competition, originally scheduled for Sunday, took place Saturday when some students at several dorms participated. The winning sculpture also came from students at Sadler, King said.

Melissa Iannopollo, a sophomore biology major, said she thinks the weather played a role in the diminished student participation but so did not getting the word out about the event.

“It could have been advertised better, “ Iannopollo said. “I saw ads earlier in the week, but they could have started a couple of weeks before.”

The winter carnival was once a tradition at SU from the 1930s until the mid-1970s after which it occurred only sporadically. This year was the first time in many years that the winter carnival was held, in an attempt to restore some lost traditions at SU.

The tradition of the winter carnival should continue, even if part of it was canceled this year, King said.

“I would like to bring it back, but I would also like to hear from the students about what they want,” King said.

Published on February 23, 2003 at 12:00 pm