OP 160 - Emergency Management
Number: OP 160
Effective: July 7, 2022
Last Reviewed: August 16, 2022
Department: Facilities Management and Planning
Last Revision: August 11, 2022

Purpose

To establish the organizational framework of the CWI Emergency Management Program.

To establish roles and responsibilities for emergency management and business continuity activities.

To provide management and coordination of prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery activities for all hazards.

Scope

This policy applies to all members of the CWI community with a particular focus on Administrative Units that have specific responsibilities identified in the College’s Emergency Operations Plan, Continuity of Operations Plan, Communication Plan, and/or business units that support essential functions.

Definition

Administrative Units: Any department, office, division, or other administrative component of the College.

Communicable Disease: An infectious disease that is spread from person to person.

Continuity of Operations: Capability to continue essential program functions and to preserve essential processes and functions, positions, lines of succession, applications and records, communications, and facilities across a broad range of potential emergencies.

Emergency: Any incident, human caused, natural or technological that requires responsive action to protect life, health, property, and/or the environment.

Emergency Operations Plan: A plan to address the process by which life safety concerns during multi-hazard emergency situations are resolved.

Essential Functions: Functions or services provided that if interrupted or unavailable for several business days would significantly jeopardize the College’s ability to serve its students and the campus community.

FERPA: The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.

Mitigation: Sustained actions taken to minimize risk/loss to people and property from hazards and their effects.

National Incident Management System (NIMS): NIMS is a comprehensive, national approach to incident management that is applicable at all jurisdictional levels and across functional disciplines.

Preparedness: Preparedness involves all the actions required to establish and sustain the level of capability necessary to execute a wide range of incident management operations. Preparedness is implemented through a continuous cycle of planning, training, and equipping, exercising, and evaluating, and taking action to correct and mitigate.

Prevention: Actions taken to avoid or stop a threatened or actual emergency situation.

Recovery: The development, execution, and coordination of service and site restoration plans. The reconstitution of the College operations and services. Evaluation of the incident to identify lessons learned, post incident reporting, and development of initiatives to prevent or mitigate the effects of future incidents.

Response: Immediate actions to save lives, protect property and the environment, and to meet basic human needs. Response also includes the execution of emergency plans and actions to support short-term recovery.

Policy

CWI is committed to maintaining a safe, healthy, and orderly campus. Specifically, CWI is committed to:

• Protecting the well-being of students, employees, and the public.
• Providing an atmosphere that serves the College’s mission.
• Safeguarding College property, equipment, and facilities.
• Minimizing the impact of emergencies and maximizing the effectiveness of the campus community in preventing, preparing for, responding to, and recovering from emergencies.
• Integrating all phases of emergency management into a comprehensive program: prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
• Aligning its Emergency Management program with the principles of the National Incident Management System (NIMS).

Guidelines

Board of Trustees:

• Delegate to the College President the authority to take emergency action(s) to protect the campus community.
• Authorize measures taken by the College to prevent the spread of communicable disease, including temporary closure of any College buildings.
• Formally declare a campus emergency for the purpose of emergency purchases.

College President (or Designee):

• Actively support the implementation of this policy and associated implementing documentation.
• Shall commit necessary College resources before, during, and after an emergency.
• Shall initiate/activate the Emergency Operations Plan as appropriate to the specific emergency.
• Shall take actions deemed appropriate to protect the campus community in the face of an epidemic of communicable disease, subject to Board of Trustees ratification.
• Shall provide strategic direction during the response and recovery phases of an emergency.
• Shall provide appropriate information to the Board of Trustees regarding campus emergencies.

Safety and Security/Risk Management Team:

• Shall revise or amend this policy as required.
• Will publish specifications implementing the provisions of this policy including the Emergency Operations Plan, Continuity of Operations Plan, Emergency Handbook and Communications Plan.

Incident Command Team:

• Shall direct, coordinate, and provide the necessary support for emergency response activities.
• Shall complete specified FEMA and other emergency management training; participate in exercises and drills.

College Administrative Units:

• Shall comply with the provisions of this policy and implement all specifications.

o Fully participate with the aspects of the Emergency Operations Plan that pertain to their units.

• Shall actively participate in the initial Continuity of Operations planning for their respective business areas and ensure that their planning remains current.
• Shall comply with the Health and Safety Emergency provisions under FERPA. See link below to Policy STU 090 – Student Records and Confidentiality.

College Community:

• Shall be familiar with and practice emergency prevention/response principles and practices such as those outlined in the CWI Emergency Handbook.
• Shall update the CWI Alert System with current reception methods and contact numbers.

Referenced