To:                   The St. Lawrence Community
From:               President Daniel F. Sullivan
Date:               September 5, 2008
Subject:           Fall Semester Emergency Planning Update

The start of the fall semester is a good time for everyone to review the emergency planning strategies we have on campus. Plus, we have a new communications technique to use, effective this past summer, and one-page summary that you might print and post; we’ll also publish it in the 2008-2009 telephone directory.

In the context of a residential college, we seek a reasonable balance between freedom of access to the spaces and people who make up our community and safety and security for the individuals who live, study and work here.  In our view, maintaining safety and security has three, integrated aspects:  rapid accurate communications, facilities management, and staffing.

Simple Protocol to Remember:  If you hear a fire alarm, leave the building. If you hear a siren on campus, stay inside the building and inside the room, locking all doors that are possible to lock.  Then, stay alert to communications that will come from one of three sources, as outlined below:  The President’s Office, Security and Safety, or University Communications.

Communications:  In the event of campus-wide emergency, we determine the potential of imminent danger and err on the side of communication, providing as much verified information as can be determined and providing regular updates.  We may use any of these methods:

• New: Reverse 911 message system that dials and causes to ring each departmental phone.
  
• Broadcast E-mail from The President’s Office, Security and Safety or University Communications
  
• Broadcast Voicemail to all operational campus phones. (Students, you need to set up your voice mail box to receive a Broadcast Voicemail.)
  
• Broadcast Text Message to those employee and student cell phone numbers that have been reported to us. The APR (our automated student registration system) system collects student emergency contact information.  Students should visit the APR Tab; under the Student Tools Menu select 'My Emergency Contact'.  Be sure to click submit when you are done.  Employees who have cell phones, either through the University or a personal contract, are urged to share their cell phone numbers with Human Resources so the numbers can be added to the SAINTS database.  Employees can update cell phone numbers by visiting this site: www.stlawu.edu/ucomm/cellphones.html.
  

These data are automatically sent to our text messaging provider. 

• Security vehicle with a built-in portable address system, siren, and emergency lights.       
  
• University Web site www.stlawu.edu.
  
• Student Life staff at all levels to communicate in person.

We continue to cost out options for customized siren systems, either through a coordinated purchase through Associated Colleges, which will give all four schools an external siren designed for each of our specific campus landscapes, or a coordinated purchase with the Canton and county governments.  Both options are being evaluated.

On-going Attention and Coordination: We have four committees to consider issues related to safety or emergencies. Each committee has distinct areas for review, but when there is overlap, we will expect coordination.
The tripartite Safety Committee members consider day-to-day, campus-wide safety issues.  The staff Safety Compliance Task Force addresses OSHA-related employee policies, procedures and training.  Our Pandemic Planning Team has become our Emergency Planning Team, to focus on our planning for and response to campus emergency situations, whether threats come from health issues, weather, or crime. The Campus Safety Advisory Board of two faculty, two staff and two students review the policies and procedures of our Security and Safety office.

This summer, staff from six offices gathered for a half-day of “tabletop” exercises in which various emergency scenarios were posed and staff described their resources.  Each office learned a great deal about other offices and about their own capabilities, assuring improved responses.

Facilities management:  The St. Lawrence campus in Canton has approximately 40 buildings, categorized as residential spaces, academic spaces, and mixed use spaces.  All residential spaces have computerized access controls such that, with a card swipe, people authorized to have access do have access and when unauthorized access is attempted that is known immediately at Security; residences on the periphery of campus have access control—usually a combination lock—at each site.  All of the residences are, by default, locked 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  Each room in all residences automatically locks when the door is closed.

For centrally controlled spaces, the Security and Safety staff can know, by card identification, those who enter a residence, and when.  Security staff can disable individual access cards for any and all spaces.
 
Staffing:  St. Lawrence employs a 19-member professional staff whose members are focused on campus safety and security.  Our staff will respond to any emergency situation with a focus on protection of students and employees, while appropriate village, county and state authorities, called immediately, will set up a command post and coordinate any necessary investigation.

A reminder that our Emergency Preparedness Web site has been a resource for you and will continue to be updated and expanded.  I would be happy to respond to your specific questions about campus security protocols, or to connect you with the professional staff who can assist you.

Emergency Guidelines
If you hear a fire alarm, evacuate, meet at a central location and take accounting of fellow residents, classmates or co-workers.  Remain outside until Safety and Security, Fire Department staff or Police signal all-clear.
If you hear a siren on campus, stay inside, close and lock your door (if possible), close curtains, stay low and stay close to a wall until further notice from e-mail, text message or phone message from The President’s Office, University Communications or Safety and Security.

If you experience an emergency yourself, call ext. 5555 on campus or 911.
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Emergency Communications
In the event of a limited emergency related to weather, crime, accident or other cause, these guidelines direct our communication:
*Those directly involved with an emergency will receive personal, direct information as immediately as possible.
*The campus community is informed promptly and updated regularly through these methods, depending on the nature of the emergency:
Email to campus email addresses

Posting on the University’s main Web www.stlawu.edu
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If the emergency poses danger to the campus-wide community, we may use any or all of these communications methods (and we hope never to have to use these):
Siren and loudspeaker on top of a mobile security vehicle.

All-campus voice mail to offices, faculty and staff

Reverse 911 to all departmental phones.

Text messaging to all cell phones in the Student database and Human Resources database.  To receive the text message, you must have a text message component to your cell phone plan and you must keep your cell phone number updated with the University.  To update your cell phone number:  Employees go to www.stlawu.edu/ucomm/cellphones.html,students go to the APR system.

Web site postings

Broadcast e-mail

Emergency Planning Team:  Lisa Cania, Ted Coviello, Patricia Ellis, Patrick Gagnon and James Mattice.