In order to address growing staff and student concerns following the tragedy at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Chancellor Marye Anne Fox took Price Center’s stage on April 30 to discuss campus safety and security.
Following an invitation to all staff and students, Fox reflected on the incident in Virginia and the improvement of UCSD’s security procedures, as well as the administration’s desire for further public input.
“”We want to ensure that we are considering all opportunities for appropriate responses to the challenges that an emergency presents,”” Fox said.
Staff members were provided time off work for the forum, and shuttles transported attendees to and from UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest and Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Despite students’ expressed concerns about safety after the Virginia Tech shootings, very few attended the meeting. Nevertheless, one of the meeting’s coordinators, Associate Vice Chancellor of University Communications Stacie A. Spector, said the turnout was about as expected because of midterms and class schedules.
The meeting focused on informing and protecting all members of the UCSD community.
Emergency Services Manager Phillip Van Saun stressed the importance of a broad security focus and continued safety education. He also discussed safety and security tools, including the Campus Emergency Response Team, a public volunteer organization created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in 1994.
Another safety measure in development is a text-messaging system that will include voice messages and e-mails, which will send out brief, official emergency updates. According to Senior Communications Adviser Paul K. Mueller, the system will be in place by the end of May, and will require voluntary registration from students and staff.
Van Saun said a registration link would be e-mailed to students and posted on the Internet.
“”You would be able to sign in with your name … your cell phone number, and any other numbers, including your parents’,”” he said.
New tactics for on-campus security personnel were also mentioned, and training has increased over the last few weeks.
UCSD Chief of Police Orville King boasted the campus police department’s full manpower before touching on logistics and the broad community involved in on-campus safety and security.
“”We have a community of over 40,000 people, including 25,000 students,”” he said. “”This is a city, and we provide the same law enforcement service that you would get living in whatever town you live in, small or large.””
Planners heavily stressed communication with local resources and emphasized the importance of community cooperation to improve campus security.
“”We work very closely with police, fire, medical and hazardous-materials teams across the entire San Diego region,”” Mueller said in an e-mail. “”We know that emergencies or catastrophes affect people and communities far from our campus in La Jolla, and that what happens there affects us here.””
Psychological Services Training Director Jeanne Manese detailed stress relief and mental health options available to students and staff and discussed the presence of protocols regarding potential violent offenders.
“”Violence is not a predictable offence,”” she said, although she noted that her staff was aware of potential situations that could indicate a future crisis.
Manese encouraged all students and staff to use psychological services if they feel stressed. Because the services are voluntary, they are only effective if used, she said.
While questions at the meeting were limited, Spector was pleased with the general response.
“”I’m glad the campus was so engaged,”” Spector said. “”[The] most important [thing] is to share info, [and] that’s something UCSD is good at.””
According to Mueller, the task of gathering and sharing information, especially in situations similar to the shootings that occurred at Virginia Tech, is a difficult but necessary job.
“”Just as universities across the nation are now doing, UCSD leaders and first-responders study such tragedies … to identify lessons learned,”” he said. “”A sad task, it can help us evaluate our own safety and security practices.””
The meeting is available as a Webcast for those unable to attend. As of press time, the link has received 121 hits since the meeting.
A new safety and security Web site was launched after the forum and the Webcast was archived on the UCSD news page. Both can be accessed via TritonLink.
