UW-Whitewater Crisis Situation Policy
Well UW-Whitewater, the school that I am currently attending decided to clarify their crisis situation policy:
To members of the UW-Whitewater campus community,
The Virginia Tech community suffered an extraordinary tragedy on Monday when more than 30 people were shot and killed and many others were wounded. Our thoughts turn to the Virginia Tech campus in this time of crisis.
In response to the situation at Virginia Tech, members of the UW-Whitewater administrative team met this morning to review campus polices and responses to emergency situations. UW-Whitewater is a safe and secure campus and we have felt comfortable in that knowledge. However, as the Virginia Tech situation shows, incidents can happen and the campus must be prepared.
In a crisis situation on the UW-Whitewater campus, all communication will come through broadcast emails and the campus homepage. It is vital that you read the broadcast emails and check the home page for important information. The Web address is UWW Home Page
Residence Life will make contact with all resident assistants today and they will schedule floor meetings this week. Specific information on these meetings will be made available to those who live in the halls. If you have any questions or concerns, please address them with your resident assistant or hall director.
In a campus violence situation, here are some ways to try to secure and protect yourself:
1. Lock or block the door.
2. Close blinds or cover windows. Stay hidden from view.
3. Call 911 or from a campus telephone call 9-911.
4. Look for a safe route of escape, if available.If the situation at Virginia Tech is causing you stress or anxiety, the University Health and Counseling Services is available to help. You can reach Counseling Services at 472-1305.
A moment of silence for the Virginia Tech victims will be held tonight prior to the Warhawk wheelchair basketball game. The game begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Williams Center and is a benefit for injured resident assistant Tony Sabel.
After reading the announcement that was broadcast emailed to the UW-Whitewater community I have two questions:
1) How do we find out there is a crisis situation on campus? I understand that we should check our email and the website for updated information but is it reasonable for us to constantly check just in case there is a crisis? Why not have a siren or a PA voice that says “hey students and staff the shit is hitting the fan.”
2) How are those of us in class supposed to check the website or our email? Not all classrooms have computers and/or access. Would it be difficult to appoint or get some volunteer in every building to spread the word in the case of a crisis situation? There are some support staff that sit at an office all day and that could be alerted by email or even better a reverse 911 type system and spread the initial word and give the all clear.
I can tell you if I was in charge or working towards a safe campus a big priority would be putting phones and / or PA systems in all classrooms. The inability to communicate directly with students, faculty, and staff in an emergency situation is inexcusable.
It took me a few seconds too long
Twice the Daily News
One of the problems of working third shift is your days get turned all around and you end up doing stupid things like buying the same newspaper twice. I did just that today. I bought a Wisconsin State Journal in the morning towards the end of my shift and another one when I woke up in the afternoon. Good thing its only 50 cents.
Tax Time
Well I decided since I was down to three days I should sit down and do my taxes. I ended up using TurboTax this year and it was a relatively painless process. The one bad part of not paying Federal Taxes in a Combat Zone is that my Tax refund is super small this year. I’m one of those folks that always enjoys getting a nice refund this time of year, I always spend it on something fun, guess I’ll have to use some of my savings.