The Four Phases of Emergency Management in Higher Education

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The Four Phases of Emergency Management in
Higher Education

• Matthew Taylor
• Associate Director Montana Safe Schools Center
• School of Education University of Montana
• Dr. Gary Margolis
• Chief of Police University of Vermont and State
  Agricultural College
• November 18, 200 - St. Paul, MN
• U.S. Department of Educations 22nd Annual
  National Meeting on
• Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence
  Prevention in Higher Education

Presentation supported in part by the Montana
Safe Schools Center at The University of Montana
(UM) and grant 2005CKWX0450 from the U.S.
Department of Justice COPS Office. Researchers at
UM are encouraged to disseminate their
conclusions, but no official endorsement by the
Montana University System Board of Regents, UM,
or by any federal sponsor should be inferred.
.
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Expanding the Lens of Prevention

• The perception of safety is a prerequisite for
  college students to achieve to their full
  potential -- and to foster an environment of
  innovation, creativity and scholarly excellence
  throughout the campus community.
• Planning prevents injuries, saves lives,
  minimizes property damage, decreases liability
  and helps restore the learning environment.
• The newly reauthorized (Aug 2008) federal Higher
  Education Opportunity Act (Public Law 110-315)
  (HEOA) requires campuses to institute an all
  hazards approach to emergency planning.
• Campuses are part of the nations critical
  infrastructure for emergency response.
• It is our ethical responsibility.

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Myths

• It can happen,but not here.
• It can happen here,but it wont affect me.
• If it happens, the consequences are so bad,
  there is no point in preparing.
• I am an educator or a student advisor, I dont
  play a role in campus safety and security that
  is for our campus police department to do.
• I serve students who are legally adults, this is
  not K-12, my students are responsible for
  themselves.
• Our campus is so large and diverse, there is no
  way to ensure its security.
• Greater security stifles the open nature of
  campuses academic freedom.

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The Landscape

• Terrorist threat
• Fire and Life Safety
• Mental illness and suicide
• Health Crises
• Food poisoning, food-borne illness, Pandemic

• High risk drinking
• Illegal prescription drug use and abuse
• Violence
• VAW
• Criminal intrusions, including rampage shooters
• Natural disasters

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Critical Incident Defined

• An extraordinary event which places lives and
  property in danger and requires the commitment
  and coordination of numerous resources to bring
  about a successful resolution

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Goals for the Institution

• Contain and resolve critical incident effectively
• Restore normal operations and core business and
  educational functions

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Most Common Challenges in Emergencies

• Communications
• Whos in Charge
• Resources and Resource Coordination
• Intelligence gathering and problem assessment
• Crowd and traffic control
• Environment
• Planning and training
• Media
• Politics

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Why Develop Emergency Management Plans?

• Most importantly, mitigate risk and minimize harm
• Fulfill legal duty to exercise reasonable care to
  prevent foreseeable harm

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Emergency Management Cycle
Assess and address vulnerabilities to decrease
the need for response.
Plan for a coordinated, effective response
develop skills in campus staff and students.
Restore the learning environment Monitor and
assist the healing, implement lessons learned.
Execute EmergencyOperation Plans in coordination
with response agencies.
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All-Hazard Approach to Planning

• Natural hazards
• Man-made hazards
• Technological hazards

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Emergency Management is a Team Effort

• Multi-disciplinary core team to direct emergency
  management activities through all four phases of
  the emergency management cycle with appropriate
  agencies as lead in the Response Phase.
• Local emergency management officials, campus
  safety, and both local and state emergency
  service representatives are key partners in
  planning
• Campus Chancellors and Presidents must publicly
  prioritize and reinforce a commitment to
  emergency management and planning.
• You are not alone in this process.

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Comparative work in K-12
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National Incident Management System (NIMS)

• Homeland Security Presidential Directive5,
  February 28, 2003
• NIMS provides a consistent nationwide template to
  enable all government, private-sector, and
  nongovernmental organizations to work together
  during domestic incidents.
• Applicable across a full spectrum of potential
  incidents and hazard scenarios, regardless of
  size or complexity.

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Incident Command System (ICS)

• Incident management system developed in the 70s
  in wildland firefighting and incorporated into
  NIMS
• Command and Management, specifically the Incident
  Command System, is an integral component of NIMS.
• ICS characteristics
• Scalable, hierarchical structure
• One person in charge
• Limited span of control
• Unified Command
• Common terminology

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Incident Command System
Incident Commander
Liaison Officer
Public Information Officer
Safety Officer
Planning/Intelligence
Operations
Logistics
Finance Administration
Staff/Student Accountability
Documentation/Recorder
Staffing
Insurance Claims
Transportation
Facility and Materials
Food Services
Personnel
Site/facility Security
Communications equip
Health Services/First Aid
Psychological First Aid (PFA-S) Team Leader
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Emergency Planning Critical Incident Response

• Physical and procedural Threat and Risk
  Assessment
• MNS and Interoperable Communications (Timely,
  Accurate, and Useful)
• National Incident Management System (NIMS)
  emergency response plans
• Emergency Response Plans
• Mutual aid plans and agreements, including for
  victim services
• First Responder EMS/EMT training

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Concept of Operations, Defined

• Provides an All Hazards campus wide operational
  plan
• Provides effective and efficient incident
  management, from pre-planning initial response
  through recovery
• Provides effective communications internal
  external
• System for incident management while providing
  critical campus operations

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Campus Concept of Operations

• Executive Policy Group
• Emergency Operations Center (EOC) (staffed by the
  Emergency Planning Group)
• Command Post Operations
• Initial Response

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Campus Concept of Operations

• Initial response
• Scene isolation stabilization
• Command post operations
• Scene management resolution

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Concept of Operations, Defined

• Emergency Operations Center (EOC)
• Focus on impact of the incident on the operation
  of the institution
• Provide coordination and networking with scene(s)
• Major logistics, maintenance of routine
  operations

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The EOC

• Operations Section
• Logistics Section
• Planning Section
• Intelligence Section
• Finance Section

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The Role of Auxiliary Services
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Campus Concept of Operations

• Executive Policy Group (provides overall
  guidance)
• Focus on impact to the institution
• Organize and direct policy decisions
• Insulate
• Inform and update VIPs
• Politics
• Message to the campus public

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Recommendations for colleges and universities in
each phase of the emergency management cycle
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PREVENTION and MITIGATION

• Campus safety, county emergency management and
  first responders to identify local hazards and
  assess vulnerabilities
• Collect data on the safety perceptions of campus
  faculty, staff and students
• Target hardening and Crime Prevention Through
  Environmental Design
• Collect, report and analyze incident report data
  (Clery Act)
• Review Student Conduct Code specific to threat
  assessment and notification
• train multi-disciplinary Crisis Response Teams
• Implement high profile prevention programs
  substance abuse, suicide, sexual assault
  anonymous reporting systems
• Enhance efficiency of data sharing among agencies.

Its about the process, more than its about the
plan
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PREPAREDNESS

• Develop and deliver emergency exercises across
  campus departments through a multi-year,
  multi-agency exercise continuum.
• Drills
• Exercises (table top, functional and full scale)
• Plan for continuity of operations including
  thresholds for shutting down campus, resuming
  classes online as feasible, student support
  services, and campus personnel.
• Create campus awareness of, and training on
• Communication channels from university, to
  college, to departmental level (incl. satellite
  campuses)
• Response procedures
• Incident Command System
• Update Mutual Aid Agreements as necessary.
• Test emergency notification systems.

Plan for the consequences Not the crisis
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RESPONSE

• Provide immediate, coordinated notification
  depending on nature of event.
• Staff, faculty and students follow directives for
  evacuation, shelter in place or lockdown.
• Activate the Incident Command System and operate
  in a multi-agency unified command structure as
  necessary.
• Maintain official communication with students,
  staff, parents, local and state agencies, the
  general public and satellite campuses.
• Secure critical records offsite as feasible.
• Ensure faculty, staff, parents, community and
  students do not alter the crime scene.
• Delegate contingency planning and mobilize mental
  health recovery assets.

Manage the crisis, dont let the crisis manage
you
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Recovery

• Strive to return to teaching and learning as
  quickly as possible with recognition that
  learning and teaching may need to look
  different in the short term.
• Implement Damage Assessment Teams.
• Maintain official communication with the public,
  satellite campuses, media and students/faculty/sta
  ff and legal counsel.
• Conduct after action reviews with students,
  staff and first responders.
• Document lessons learned and implement
  accountability plans to ensure lessons learned
  are not lessons lost.
• Support mental health recovery teams
• Begin planning for issues surrounding
• donations, memorials, anniversaries

Restore the learning environment, help the healing
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Next Steps

• STEP 1 Get organized
• STEP 2 Identify hazards and conduct a risk
  assessment
• STEP 3 Develop or update emergency management
  plan
• STEP 4 Adopt and implement the plan

G
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Conclusion what we should be doing

• Collaborating Within our institutions
• Cooperating With our local first responders
• Creating Innovation approaches to enhancing
  campus safety
• What is the next Big Thing?

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• "Safety and security don't just happen, they are
  the result of collective consensus and public
  investment. We owe our children, the most
  vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free
  of violence and fear."
• Nelson Mandela,former president of South Africa 

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Thank you

• Matthew Taylor
• Matt.taylor_at_mso.umt.edu
• www.montanasafeschools.org
• 406-243-5367
• Dr. Gary J. Margolis
• Gary.Margolis_at_uvm.edu