[IMAGE]1553[/IMAGE]
Lessons Learned: Define Terms, Roles of Non-Security Staff
Although UT Austin’s response to the Sept. 28 incident was clearly a success, Harkins notes that there were some lessons he and his fellow administrators learned. Most of the areas of improvement involved definitions of terms and keeping things simple. For example, one confusing term is “shelter in place.” Many students and the general public, for that matter, might not know what it means.
“Each year, at least 25 percent of the population is new again,” says Harkins. “You’ve got to go back and make sure everyone understands your words.”
Clarity is also important when defining the roles non-public safety personnel must play when an incident occurs.
“I need to know the five things you did in your office when you found out about this event,” Harkins asked participants in his August tabletop exercise. “What is facilities going to do? What is parking and traffic going to do?”
Harkins claims the sharing of this information among the participants contributed to the effective campus response.
Dahlstrom agrees saying, “People were doing the right things at the right time and were a big help. We had a parking transportation kiosk guard who saw the gunman go by, and the guard started grabbing students and putting them in the building. I couldn’t have asked him to do anything different. There were responses like that all around.”
Dalhstrom is quick to point out, however, that the university was lucky that the gunman was not homicidal.
“We were very fortunate,” he says. “Still, it was a tragedy. We lost a student, and parents lost a son. But it was a campus-wide success. It could have been a lot worse.”
Campus at a Glance
Founded in 1883, the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) is located in Austin, Texas, approximately four blocks from the state capitol. The campus spans 440 acres and has more than 200 buildings. UT Austin is one of the largest universities in the United States with approximately 50,000 students, and 17,000 faculty and staff.
The campus police department has 65 sworn police officers and 60 nonsworn security officers. Sworn officers are equipped with M4 rifles, body armor and helmets. Patrol vehicles are equipped with mobile video.
