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| President Doug
Bennet speaks to members of the Wesleyan community during a memorial vigil
April 18 at Olin Library. The student-organized vigil was one way Wesleyan
is expressing concern to the victims of the recent Virginia Tech tragedy.
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| Posted 04.18.07 |
Update on the Tragedy at Virginia Tech
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I am writing to apprise you of Wesleyan
community responses to the tragedy at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and
State University and to give you a sense of how Wesleyan would respond in
the event of a similar catastrophic event.
 At
2 p.m., Tuesday, April 17, the college bells at Wesleyan rang and we invited
members of the community to observe a moment of silence and reflection.
Students organized a memorial vigil April 18 in front of Olin Library. We will forward expressions of concern and support from
members of the campus community to our colleagues at Virginia Tech.
Our deans have written to all students to remind them that support services
are available through the Dean's Office and 24 hours a day through the
Office of Behavioral Health for Students.
In the event such a catastrophe befell the Wesleyan community, we would
provide multiple sources of information: via the Internet, voicemail, email,
and personal communication. In addition to posting emergency messages on the
University website and broadcasting these messages to the campus community
via email, we would contact students on their personal telephones and cell
phones, using a new remote system that would enable us to reach them even if
all campus systems were inoperable. We also would work through the
Residential Life staff to get the word out in person. The Office of Public
Safety responds to any emergency situation and would immediately call in the
appropriate municipal and state authorities, who would set up a command
post, evacuate and secure the area, and bring to bear all resources at their
disposal. Our on-call system would immediately mobilize the University's top
administrators.
 Wesleyan staff routinely review our preparedness procedures to ensure that
we maintain the safest possible campus. A team of staff members currently is
updating Wesleyan's emergency response plan in order to comprehend more
recent threats, such as the possibility of a pandemic contagion, and to
ensure consistency with protocols established in the National Incident
Management System created by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. This
same team recently conducted a training drill implementing our plan in
conjunction with the City of Middletown police, fire, and health
departments.
No amount of advance preparation can guarantee that we will prevent a
tragedy. Still, we want you to be aware that Wesleyan has a solid
preparedness plan and that we would activate it immediately in the event of
a campus emergency.
I know you join me in sending thoughts and prayers to the people of Virginia
Tech.
Sincerely,
Douglas J. Bennet
President, Wesleyan University |
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