Announcements

Emergency Preparedness Resources

• Student Help Resources - PDF (82KB)
• Faculty-Staff Help Resources - PDF (61KB)
• Where do I go from here? What do I do?

Emergency Preparedness - A Letter from the President

8/26/07

Dear Campus Colleagues:
Welcome back to UB! I will be writing to you soon with a fall update about recent campus news, UB2020 progress, and student, faculty, and staff achievements over the past few months. In the meantime, before the fall semester is in full swing, I wanted to take a moment to share some important information about campus safety, as I know this is a matter of continuing concern not only here at UB but nationwide as well.

While campus safety has always been a matter of highest priority for UB, recent national events like last spring’s tragedy at Virginia Tech University have given our UB community—and our fellow universities and colleges across the country—a heightened appreciation of the need for campus preparedness and effective communication in the event of emergency situations. Over the last several months, UB has been carefully reviewing its plans and procedures for emergency preparedness and response while introducing new measures to enhance campus communications, including the newly available text messaging alert system announced this past week.

In the aftermath of the Virginia Tech shooting, our faculty, staff, students, parents, and community members had many questions and concerns about what individual members of the campus community can do to ensure a safe campus environment, and whom to call in the event of a similar crisis.

With that in mind, as part of our ongoing efforts to ensure campus emergency preparedness, UB is engaged in an effort to help campus community members identify potentially dangerous situations, and receive and communicate critical safety information through the appropriate university channels. Toward this end, UB has compiled a comprehensive list of the resources available for consultation and referral when concerns arise about students, faculty, or staff who may pose a threat to themselves or others. If you are in trouble, or you know someone else in need of help, I urge you to share your concerns immediately with any of the office resources listed on this reference guide.

I encourage you to familiarize yourself with these resources (listed below). You will also see this information posted in prominent public areas on campus beginning this semester. In addition to providing details about where to direct questions or information about potential security threats, this reference guide also serves to help students, faculty, and staff better recognize the warning signs of individuals whose behavior is of concern.

As members of the university community, each of us contributes to the safety of our campus. Remaining acutely aware of our surroundings, and helping to communicate any potentially concerning behavior or activity, are critical elements to ensuring the safety and security of our students, faculty, and staff. By helping others get the help they need, we are better able to foster a safe, supportive, and responsive campus environment for the benefit of our entire university community.

Sincerely
John B. Simpson

Resources

• Student Help Resources - PDF (82KB)
• Faculty-Staff Help Resources - PDF (61KB)
• Where do I go from here? What do I do?

New Sexual Harassment Education & Prevention Program for Employees & Students 2008

A new program is an on-line tutorial that includes the following information:

• definitions of behaviors that constitute sexual harassment
• information about related laws and policies
• interactive exercises to test the user’s knowledge
• extensive resource material
• reporting procedures
• campus contacts

Additional features of the program include a short subject mastery test, a completion certificate that can be printed for the individual’s record, and an e-mail link for user comments.

Members of the University community are encouraged to avail themselves of this resource and to become informed about our collective responsibility to maintain a campus environment free from sexual harassment or any form of discrimination.

Access the on-line program:
https://secure.newmedialearning.com/psh/ubuffalo/

In addition to this new program, the University has established a corps of trained Sexual Harassment Advisors, including faculty and staff members, in units across the campus. The primary responsibilities of these Advisors are to serve as a resource for faculty, staff and students on questions related to sexual harassment, and to assist with information dissemination and education. Contact information for Advisors and the program link are located on the Equity, Diversity & Affirmative Action Administration website.

Questions regarding this program should be directed to the Office of Equity, Diversity and Affirmation Action Administration at 645-2266. For those employees whose work does not require them to have direct computer access, departments may also contact this office for consultation and assistance with alternate training arrangements.

Related Sites

None at this time