In the Event of Disaster
UT now has a contract with e2Campus, a service that will send emergency text messages.
Adisturbed student kills two fellow students in a dorm. A short while later, the same gunman opens fire in a classroom, killing multiple students and faculty members.
When those horrible crimes unfolded on the Virginia Tech campus in April, administrators at UT—like those at colleges and universities everywhere—knew it was time to review and update their own security plans.
UT has an emergency management plan that deals with everything from disease outbreaks to natural disasters to criminal activity. An emergency management team composed of police, administration, facilities and housing, information technology, and communications staff regularly reviews and updates the plan, tests it, and conducts tabletop exercises.
“Any time there’s a national crisis, whether it be the shootings at Columbine High School or Virginia Tech or a natural disaster like Hurricane Katrina, we have to re-evaluate our plan with that in mind,” said Chancellor Loren Crabtree. “Our overriding philosophy in this area is clear—as public officials we must think of the unthinkable and do our best to prepare and respond to situations as they arise.”
Getting the message
After the Virginia Tech massacre, UT officials saw a need to increase their ability to notify the campus community in the event of disaster. While they already were able to rapidly notify employees by voicemail, e-mail, cable TV—even via “traveling loudspeakers” in UT Police Department squad cars—administrators decided a text messaging system would be a smart addition.
The campus now has a contract with e2Campus, a service that will help set up a system to send emergency text messages to phones and other devices.
“We’d been looking at text messaging systems for a while,” Crabtree said. “One of the things we liked about e2campus was that it gives us the control over messages sent. It will be an emergency notification service. It won’t be used for advertising or spam.”
“Text messaging is simply another tool in our emergency communications arsenal. No single communications strategy can reach all, but through overlapping and wide-ranging communications efforts, we are prepared to quickly share information across the institution.”
Students, faculty, and staff soon will receive instructions about how to sign up for e2Campus.
What if...
How would UT officials react if a Virginia Tech disaster happened here?
“We’ve been asked that question dozens of times since April 16,” UT Police Chief August Washington said. “No two events are ever the same, so I must answer by describing the plans we have in place to handle all types of disasters.”
UT is fortunate to have its own campus police force of 50 officers and another 60 security officers. There’s also great cooperation between UT police and other law enforcement in the area.
The UT police undergo continuous emergency response training with city and county law enforcement, the FBI, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“Having this network in place means all of these agencies can mount a coordinated response if an emergency occurs,” Washington said.
Washington said UT police increased their patrols after the Virginia Tech tragedy to make sure they were highly visible in residence halls, parking garages, and other pertinent locations.
As part of the campus’s overall security measures, the entrances to the living areas of residence halls are locked. The halls are staffed 24 hours a day and equipped with communications equipment—including two-way radios, special phone systems, and broadcast intercoms—that allows officials to quickly relay emergency information, if necessary. Several campus buildings have special security locks that can be remotely activated in the event that a lockdown is required. In the buildings that do not have this equipment, facilities personnel are trained to handle lockdown situations.
Handling distressed students
After the Virginia Tech shootings, several English department faculty members there said they’d witnessed gunman Seung-Hui Cho’s strange behavior, reported it, and tried to seek assistance. What avenues exist for UT faculty members who have concerns about distressed students?
“In dealing with reports of a distressed student, the university’s primary objective is the health and safety of the overall campus community and serving the best interest of the individual student,” Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Tim Rogers said.
Student affairs personnel will reach out to the student to assess his or her demeanor and determine if a threat exists. In cases where the distressed student violates university standards of conduct, student affairs personnel may require the student get mental health or drug and alcohol counseling as part of the disciplinary action.
“In these cases, staff can suggest a student seek counseling, but cannot mandate his or her attendance,” Rogers said. “Parents can be notified if the student signs a waiver or exigent circumstances exist.”
Confidentiality laws limit the information counseling/medical representatives can disclose about individual students who seek treatment.
The university has the right to dismiss students if they are deemed an imminent threat to themselves or to the greater campus community. The university also can consider students’ off-campus conduct in making such a determination.
Similarly, UT police officers can detain people for their own safety in specific circumstances. If a student were to threaten suicide, he could be detained until he was evaluated by a mobile crisis team. Student affairs and police receive specialized training in handling student mental health issues.
The dean of students regularly convenes a Distressed Student Protocol Task Force—with members coming from judicial affairs, academic affairs, UT police, and the counseling/health service areas—to evaluate how the university handles distressed students.
Routine business
Although the Virginia Tech shootings made campus administrators think about how they’d handle a catastrophe, most campus security issues are—thankfully—much smaller in scope.
“Although we must plan for the unthinkable, we have everyday security concerns that are also important,” Washington said.
According to a recent report compiled by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation using crime statistics from campuses statewide, larceny and theft make up the largest percentage of offenses on all campuses, UT included.
When a crime such as a burglary or an assault does occur on campus, UT police notify students, faculty, and staff through a campuswide e-mail alert. The media is notified, and police post fliers at key locations.
To help students and employees stay safe as they traverse the campus, especially at night, UT also has more than 100 blue light security phones positioned across campus. By pushing a button, a person can connect directly to the E-911 dispatcher or summon a shuttle ride from Knoxville Area Transit (KAT).
In an e-mail message after the Virginia Tech shootings, Crabtree reminded students, faculty, and staff that campus security is a group effort.
“We are looking at additional ways to improve our security plan, and we ask that everyone share the responsibility. Stay alert. Adhere to security measures and notify UT Police if you see anything or anyone you think is suspicious,” he wrote.
“As we grieve with our colleagues at Virginia Tech, let’s all pledge to be more vigilant for safety on our own campus.”