FSCC board to discuss crisis plan

FORT SCOTT, Kan. -- Fort Scott Community College administrators and staff want to make sure the college is prepared in the event of a crisis situation.

During the FSCC Board of Trustees meeting at 5:30 p.m., Monday, in the FSCC Heritage Room, 2108 S. Horton St., the board is scheduled to hear a report from members of a committee established in early 2008 to ensure that campus policies and procedures are in place should a crisis situation such as a natural disaster or other violent act or threat occur at the college.

Fort Scott Community College Public Relations Director Kathleen Hin-richs and Vanessa Poyner, a criminal justice instructor at FSCC, are scheduled to speak to the board about the development of the college's crisis management plan, which outlines where staff and students go and what actions they take during a crisis.

"We'll give an update on the committee's activities," Hinrichs said. "We've alerted the entire campus about locations they should move to in a crisis. We're also looking at more detailed signage. We want to get the notification out to people quickly (in a crisis)."

Hinrichs added that about 30-35 staff members on campus have been appointed as contacts in the event of an emergency or crisis situation; and FSCC employees have also begun to wear photo identification badges as an added security measure, she said.

During the Monday meeting, Hinrichs is slated to talk about the committee's recent activities, while Poyner will update the board on how local law enforcement is involved in the college's crisis management plan.

"We want to be prepared in case of a crisis," Hinrichs said.

Fort Scott Community College President Clayton Tatro said the crisis management plan is part of the college's continuing efforts to boost security measures. While there have been no recent criminal actions nor crisis situations at FSCC, ensuring staff and student safety is still a top priority for the college, Tatro said.

"For one, the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act requires all colleges and universities to have a crisis management plan," he said. "Also, in light of shootings on college campuses, we want to be prepared in case of an intruder alert, or an armed gunman on campus."

Tatro said that along with hearing about the progress of the management plan, the board will also hear about the results of a recent campus-wide tornado drill.

Another security measure that college officials have employed since beginning a crisis management plan last year is the hiring of a trained full-time security officer, who interacts with students and previously monitored activities on the college's main campus and the Burke Street campus.

The officer's duties have changed over the last year from general security duties on the main campus to focusing more on monitoring the college's dormitories, an FSCC statement said.

"We had contracted security prior to that (hiring a security officer)," Tatro said. "The advantage of a full-time security officer who communicates directly to us is much better in terms of communication and safety. We're very pleased with where we've gone in that direction."

Early last year, another security measure at FSCC involved the installation of a 16-camera security system in both FSCC dorms and in parking lots in the area to allow college officials to monitor people who enter and exit the dorms, and also watch for any suspicious activity.

Digital video recording devices capture video and store it for later viewing. The installation of this system is part of the implementation of the college's crisis management system.