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SJRCC Press Release
April 2009
SJRCC safety plan nears completion
After implementing a new safety plan following the Virginia Tech tragedy in 2007, St. Johns River Community College officials agree the plan is near completion following a successful campus-wide drill held on the Palatka campus.
The drill consisted of a campus-wide lockdown, evacuation and test of the emergency speaker and telephone-based alert systems. The College also tested its latest security addition, a computer alert system.
Director of Campus Safety David Stout said the plan is no longer a work in progress as the drill confirmed two important goals - to communicate effectively throughout the campus and to execute a plan for a safe outcome in the event of an emergency.
“We are one of the few colleges in the state that has conducted a complete campus-wide test of its emergency system involving faculty, staff and students in the drill,” he said. “We are much better prepared as an institution and will be much safer on all of our campuses as a result of the changes in our emergency operations plan,” Stout said.
While campuses in Orange Park and St. Augustine underwent similar drills during the summer, it was a first for the Palatka campus. Stout said he saved the College’s most complex campus for last. “The variety of Palatka’s programs and its unique classroom structure added additional strategies to the lockdown,” Stout said. “The spring term was also a great opportunity to test the plan with a campus full of students and faculty.”
Representatives from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Region III Domestic Security Task Force, the Palatka Police Department, and the Putnam and Duval County Sheriff’s offices were on campus to monitor and evaluate the drill. “It’s important to get as much support and feedback as possible,” Stout said. Also observing the drill was Manatee Community College Chief Paul Porter. Participants were given specific command posts to observe and critique during the drill and later met to compare notes on areas that passed and failed expectations.
Stout added that the system needs one more component. “We’re applying for a federal grant to expand the system,” he said. “Our ultimate goal is to add a mass communication speaker system in every classroom, in every building, on every campus.”
PHOTO CAPTION:
PHOTO ONE: SJRCC Director of Campus Safety David Stout and Lieutenant Tommy Mullins prepare to implement the College’s first campus-wide drill using its new computer alert system.
PHOTO TWO: Palatka Police Sergeant Matt Newcomb prepares for the College’s first campus-wide safety drill.
PHOTO THREE: FDLE agent Mike Scarola and SJRCC security officer Ed Reed check each classroom during the campus-wide lockdown.
Return to SJRCC home page.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Susan Kessler
SJRCC Director of Public Relations and Publications
5001 St. Johns Avenue
Palatka, FL 32177
(386) 312-4020
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