Union begins the new academic year with a number of important campus safety measures in effect.
The College routinely examines its Emergency Response Plan, which includes procedures that strive to ensure a rapid response to an unanticipated emergency or threatening situation. In the aftermath of the tragedy at Virginia Tech, a core group of the Emergency Response Committee, made up of senior College administrators, members of Campus Safety and others spent the summer reviewing and assessing the College’s emergency plan and communication strategies.
“In the event of an emergency, an effective College-wide communications process is critical to provide the greatest safety possible for our students, faculty and staff,” said Director of Campus Safety Bill Sickinger.
The newest policies and procedures include:
Text messaging: The College has collected more than 2,300 cell-phone numbers from students, faculty and staff to allow text-message alerts to be sent during an emergency. A system will be finalized shortly, allowing people to update or voluntarily provide their cell-phone number if they wish to receive the alerts. “Although we will continue to use e-mail alerts in an emergency, we encourage the entire campus community to participate in the text-alert system,” Sickinger said.
Emergency siren: A new emergency siren has been installed on the roof of the Reamer Campus Center. In the event of a serious incident, the siren will alert members of the campus community to seek additional information through the College Web site (www.union.edu), WRUC (89.7 FM) and UC-TV (Channel 21).
Web site: The home page will be modified in an emergency to post critical information.
Public address system: A new public address system has been purchased, with plans to install loudspeakers on 20 campus buildings. In addition, seven campus safety vehicles have been equipped with loudspeakers. As part of the review of the Emergency Response Plan, the committee participated in a tabletop exercise. A second exercise will be conducted this fall, and a full-scale drill involving local emergency responders is planned for spring. The College will be testing the emergency communications and notification system on a quarterly basis or more frequently, if necessary.
Other steps taken to enhance security include:
Surveillance cameras: Seven additional cameras have been installed around campus, with plans to add three more. That would bring the number of surveillance cameras on and around campus to 32.
Landscaping and lighting: Facilities Services has removed low hanging branches, bushes and trees, and it has installed higher wattage lamps in lights around campus. The city of Schenectady recently installed two stop signs on Seward Place to provide safer access to campus for students from College Park Hall.
“The College is committed to providing a safe and secure environment for its students, employees and staff,” said Sickinger. Those with questions or concerns are encouraged to contact him at ext. 6358.