Emergency Preparedness

In recent years, colleges and universities have faced an increasing array of potential crises, including terrorist attacks, natural disasters, threatened or actual shootings, disease outbreaks, and student suicides. Planning ahead for these events is essential to ensure appropriate responses and sound decision-making, which in turn may save lives and minimize physical and psychological damage.

Numerous resources are available to assist colleges and universities in creating a comprehensive crisis plan addressing a variety of emergency situations. Although written for primary and secondary education settings, the U.S. Department of Education’s Practical Information on Crisis Planning: A Guide for Schools and Communities outlines a helpful crisis management model that includes four phases:

• Mitigation/Prevention addresses what institutions can do to reduce or eliminate risk to life and property.
• Preparedness focuses on the process of planning for the worst-case scenario.
• Response is devoted to the steps to take during a crisis.
• Recovery deals with how to restore the learning and teaching environment after a crisis.

Crisis management planning is not a time-bound task but rather a continuous process in which all phases of the plan are reviewed, revised, and updated based on changing circumstances, practice exercises, and new research.

Crisis plans should be customized to each institution’s specific circumstances, considering factors such as institutional size, physical layout, unique risks, community context, student composition, institutional reporting structures, community emergency resources, and other factors. For example, a small rural college in “tornado alley” that serves an older commuter population will need a different crisis plan than a large urban riverfront university serving mostly traditionally aged residential students.

Examples of Specific Activities:

• Create a crisis team that includes campus and community representatives, including top leadership.
• Identify proactively the full range of crises that may occur and define what events would activate the crisis plan.
• Open the channels of communication well before a crisis and create a shared vocabulary.
• Develop crisis plans in partnership with community stakeholders, including law enforcement and other emergency responders, K-12 school systems, and health and mental health professionals.
• Plan for the diverse needs of students, faculty, and staff, including those with special sensory, motor, or linguistic needs.
• Disseminate, train, and practice the plan.

This Emergency Preparedness section of the Center’s Web site includes comprehensive planning guides and other resources focused primarily on proactive planning rather than response. Responding to a Violent or Traumatic Event lists resources with an emphasis on immediate and long-term recovery efforts following a crisis or trauma. The Suicide section lists resources related to student mental health issues and suicide.

Another helpful resource is Preventing Violence and Promoting Safety in Higher Education Settings: Overview of a Comprehensive Approach, which outlines the Center's violence prevention framework, a comprehensive approach to addressing a broad array of campus violence and safety issues.