Document Type

Presentation

Publication Date

2-2011

Abstract

In the wake of the Virginia Tech tragedy and less than two years removed from back to back hurricane experiences with Katrina and Rita, the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System (ULS) made specific recommendations to all of its member institutions regarding increased preparedness and enhanced response for managing an active shooter incident on a ULS campus. The ULS Emergency Preparedness Steering Committee (EPSC) was formed to undertake the immense task of implementation these recommendations by drawing on campus and system resource persons representing environmental health and safety, public safety, student affairs, academic affairs, business affairs, facilities and planning, and public information and communications. In the four years since its formation the EPSC has played a vital role in assisting ULS institutions in strengthening multi-hazard disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery capabilities, important priorities for the state’s largest public university system comprised of eight campuses enrolling more than 80,000 students annually. Hurricanes Gustav and Ike H1N1 pandemic scare of 2009 provided real-time scenarios in which EPSC mutual aid system, coordination with local, state, and federal authorities, and capacity for contributing to community, parish, and state response and recovery actions were put to the test. This presentation will illustrate the history and evolution of the EPSC, describe the diversity of campus and system stakeholders who have been engaged in is work since inception, and offer practical insights into how your campus or system might benefit from a similar organization.

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