It is the priority of Washtenaw Community College to promptly alert the College community of potentially dangerous situations so that they have both the time and information to take appropriate precautions (for example; evacuation, shelter, or other action on the part of the campus community).
The President of the College, members of the WCC Crisis Management Team, or authorized Public Safety staff are primarily responsible for deciding that there is a significant emergency or dangerous situation on campus that could cause an immediate threat to the health and safety of the members of the campus community. On a case-by-case basis in light of all the facts surrounding the nature of the threat, the President of the College, members of the WCC Crisis Management Team, or authorized Public Safety staff will attempt to verify whether there is a dangerous situation through such means as camera systems and/or witness accounts. All reported dangerous situations will be treated as such until proven otherwise.
The President of the College, members of the WCC Crisis Management Team, or authorized Public Safety staff have the authority to determine the appropriate segment or segments of the campus community that will receive alerts, to determine the content of the alert, and to initiate the notification system. The campus community will be alerted through the notification method deemed the most effective, which may include but is not limited to; the WCC Alert – Emergency Notification System, email, text message, social media, internal TV monitors, phone call, web site notice, through the building notification system, and/or from a combination of these and other communication methods. The College typically provides follow-up information to the community using the same systems that were used to send out the original alert.
WCC will inform the neighboring communities of emergency information via radio, and/or television, social media, or other forms of public announcements. Follow-up information will be issued to the neighboring communities using the same systems that were used to send out the original alert. The President of the College, members of the WCC Crisis Management Team, or authorized Public Safety staff will, without delay, while taking into account the safety of the community, determine the content of the notification and initiate the notification system(s), unless issuing a notification will, in the professional judgment of first responders, compromise efforts to assist a victim or to contain, respond to, or otherwise mitigate the emergency.
Typically, the first responders to a health and/or safety incident at Washtenaw Community College are one of the following – the Public Safety department; Michigan State Police; Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Department; Pittsfield Township Police Department; Ann Arbor Township Fire Department; and Huron Valley Ambulance.
Members of the WCC Crisis Management Team are:
- President
- EVP Student & Academic Services
- EVP & Chief Financial Officer
- VP for Instruction
- VP Human Resource Management
- VP Economic, Community & College Development
- General Counsel
- AVP Marketing and Communications
- AVP College Advancement
- AVP Facilities Development & Operations
- Chief, Public Safety
- Deputy Chief, Public Safety
- Dean, Economic and Community Development
- Director, Media Relations
- Communications Manager
- Director, Systems Administration
- Assistant Dean of WTMC
- Dean of Students
- Director, President & Board Affairs
Authorized Public Safety staff are:
- Chief of Public Safety and Emergency Management
- Deputy Chief, Public Safety
- Public Safety Supervisors
- Public Safety Dispatchers operating under the direction of the Chief of Public Safety and Emergency Management or Supervisors