Policy Statement

Keene State College has contracted with Avtex, Inc. to offer the City Watch Emergency Notification System to the Keene State community. The system is designed to send emergency messages to enrolled campus members via SMS (text) message, cellular telephone and/or e-mail when circumstances dictate. The City Watch system is part of the College's overall communication plan.

The Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be used when a situation exists that presents an imminent danger to the campus and/or to notify the College's Emergency Operations Group of an incident. An "imminent danger" is one that threatens the immediate safety of the campus community, is not anticipated, and failure to provide such a warning may result in serious harm. Examples of such emergencies are a tornado, a chemical or hazardous material spill, or an armed and actively violent person. ENS messages will not be used unless the situation is determined to be imminent and requires immediate action.

Information submitted to the City Watch system will be used only for purposes of emergency communication and will not be sold or used for marketing or any purpose other than emergency communications. Emergency communications are those that describe a significant risk to the health and safety of the community.

ENS can be activated through EOP standard protocol and/or through authorization by: the College President; the Vice President of Academic Affairs/Provost; the Vice President of Finance and Administration; the Vice President of Student Affairs; the Director of Campus Safety; or the Director of College Relations.

The Emergency Notification System will be tested once annually and/or as part of a campus-wide drill. The purpose of the drill is to ensure that the system is in good working order and that campus community members know what actions should be taken in case of emergency.

Procedures

Registration

1. Enrollment in the ENS is available to all members of the Keene State College community.
2. In order to receive ENS messages, members of the Keene State College community must enroll online and provide contact information indicating by what means they would like to be notified in case of emergency.
3. A message will be sent out via the College's e-mail system and the KSC Mail Cruiser system notifying community members that the College has contracted with the City Watch System and providing an Internet hyperlink to the City Watch enrollment page.
4. Individuals who choose to enroll will complete the online registration form and submit the information to City Watch.
5. Enrollment information will be provided to all new College employees upon hire.
6. Enrollment messages will be sent out to students at the beginning of the Fall and Spring semesters to enroll new students and/or to provide students an opportunity to update their contact information.
7. An enrollment message will be sent out to faculty and staff at the beginning of each Fall Semester to ensure contact information is correct and up-to-date.

Activation of Emergency Notification System

1. When Campus Safety receives a report that an incident has occurred or may occur that presents an imminent danger to campus, he/she will immediately advise the supervisor on duty or on call of the threat.
2. The supervisor will determine if the incident requires an emergency campus notification via the ENS or if the campus notification can be made effectively via other communication methods.
3. If it is determined that the ENS will be used, the supervisor will log on to the City Watch ENS and send out the appropriate warning notification (see attached list).
4. If the supervisor is not able to access the Internet, he/she will authorize the dispatcher to send out the notification.
5. The dispatcher and/or supervisor will immediately notify the Director of Campus Safety or designee if the ENS is used.
6. The Director of Campus Safety or designee will notify the following individuals to advise them of the emergency and activate the College EOC if necessary:

• a. College President
• b. Vice President of Academic Affairs/Provost
• c. Vice President of Student Affairs
• d. Vice President of Finance and Administration
• e. Director of College Relations

7. When the emergency is over, a message will be sent out to the community indicating that the emergency is over.

ENS Testing/Maintenance

The Emergency Notification System will be tested periodically to ensure it is in good working order and/or during a drill.

The following individuals are authorized to request a test of the system:

• College President or designee
• Director of Campus Safety or designee
• City of Keene Fire Chief
• City of Keene Police Chief

1. When a test of the system is authorized, the College will make every effort to notify the Keene State College faculty, staff, and students via web and e-mail postings.
2. When the test begins, Campus Safety will send out a message indicating that the system is being tested using the procedure described above.
3. At the conclusion of the test, an e-mail will be sent to Keene State College faculty, staff, and students advising them that the test is concluded and any further emergency notifications should be considered real.

Annual Drill

1. When a drill is authorized, the College will make every effort to notify the Keene State College faculty, staff, and students via web and e-mail postings.
2. Prior to the beginning of the drill, a message will be disseminated to the campus via broadcast e-mail indicating that the following message is associated with a drill and that all community members are to respond as they would in a true emergency.
3. When the drill begins, Campus Safety staff will be advised to send one of the standard emergency messages.
4. In concert with the above message, a message will be sent out via other campus messaging systems announcing the drill and actions to be taken.
5. Drill staff will ensure that the appropriate actions have been taken (building evacuated or shelter taken as directed).
6. When the drill is concluded, an e-mail will be sent to Keene State College faculty, staff, and students advising them that the drill is concluded and any further emergency broadcasts should be considered real.

This policy is subject to periodic review and revision at the request of the College Emergency Operations Planning Core Team.