OUR CAMPUS
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Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Faculty Update Mixed messages on the bomb threat Criticism and controversy surrounded the bomb threat that forced UT officials to evacuate campus Friday, Sept. 14. Both off campus and online, students wondered why they were notified via text alert over an hour after the university was made aware of the threat. The caller, a man claiming to belong to al-Qaida, warned of bombs placed in several campus buildings, although the warning text gave vague indications about why the evacuation was necessary.
cell phone vibrated,” said radio-televisionfilm assistant professor Madhavi Mallapragada. “I announced to the class that we needed to leave the building immediately, but when we got outside there were several students hanging around. It was clear they didn’t understand all buildings needed to be evacuated. The wording in the text messages seemed to create anxiety, although there were no overt signs of panic or desperation.”
Even faculty members appeared confused about what was expected of them by university officials. “I was wrapping up my lecture when my
Alexander Weinreb, a sociology assistant professor, said that while everything went relatively smoothly, he was concerned about classroom
interruption. “I hope the university authorities can figure out a reasonable protocol to minimize disruptions in the future. In his Tower Talk blog, however, President Powers reassured readers that student and faculty safety was his number one priority. He went on to commend severalon-campusofficesfor facilitating a fast evacuation and acknowledged that new methods had already been identified to improve emergency procedures and communication. English freshman Birdie Zepeda said her professor informed students the following week that she had put her TA in charge of
monitoring a cell phone in case of another emergency. The communication measures currently in place take advantage of a wide range of student access points. As Powers points out, students were alerted using not only the campus text alerts system but also throughvarioussocialmedia sites (Twitter and Facebook), the university’s website, local media outlets and – most noticeably – the campuswide emergency sirens. Robert Dahlstrom, UT campus chief of police, told local news stations he understands concerns regarding what students considered late notification.
“After major events like this one, we always hold meetings to discuss potential system improvements,” said Dahlstrom. “We review procedures – reinforce what went well and change what didn’t – and do our best to make everyone feel safe.”
Emergency Preparedness website at www.utexas. edu/safety/preparedness/ for more information.
University campus safety and security representatives also meet regularly with buildingmanagerstodiscuss best practices and ways to improve. Their next meeting is scheduled for Oct. 17 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. in ACES 2.302.
President Powers has authorized the use of paid emergency leave for Sept. 14 from 9:51 a.m. through 5 p.m. for all benefit-eligible employees.
Also, if you haven’t already, make sure you register your cell phone online in order to receive text message alerts. Visit UT’s
Lost work time due to evacuation?
If you were an essential employee and were instructed to work during the evacuation, emergency leave still applies to you. On your timesheet, record the hours worked plus emergency leave. For more information on how to record emergency leave, contact the Human Resource Service Center (HRSC) at 512-471-4772 or email hrsc@austin. utexas.edu.