To the Middlebury College Community
This week’s tragic events at Virginia Tech have led to many questions about the safety of the Middlebury campus, and our procedures for dealing with dangerous intruders or threats from within the campus community.
As you may know, we are already engaged in the process of updating and clarifying the College’s policies and procedures for dealing with a range of crises and emergencies through the Emergency Planning Steering Committee appointed earlier this term. The final plan, which will be released in the fall, will contain specific instructions to the community for responding to a variety of situations. Many of the issues and concerns that have arisen in connection with the Virginia Tech shootings are already under discussion in this context. Our Department of Public Safety has been in touch with the Middlebury Police Department to review their procedures and ensure good coordination in the event of a hostile intruder or what is called an "active shooter" on campus. Public Safety would notify state and local police as well as medical teams immediately upon identification of a threat. The Middlebury Police Department in conjunction with the Vermont State Police would coordinate any action requiring an armed response, while relying on Public Safety to restrict movement on campus and isolate specific areas. If a lockdown of buildings seems prudent, the access card system would be utilized to secure all residential buildings, while non-access-card buildings would need to be physically locked by Public Safety or Facilities Services.
The incident in Virginia highlighted the critical importance of being able to communicate promptly with students, faculty, and staff to convey warnings or instructions. One concern already identified by the Emergency Planning committee is the difficulty of contacting students quickly, given that many students do not use the College voicemail and e-mail systems regularly, communicating instead through text messaging or calls on private cell phones. Starting next fall, we will require students to provide us with their individual cell phone numbers along with an emergency evacuation address prior to being allowed to register for classes. Library and Information Services is currently researching vendor options for integrated communication systems that would allow us to send mass cell phone, text, and e-mail messages to the entire community. We are also considering the possibility of installing old-fashioned sirens.
Finally, these terrible events remind us of the importance of attentiveness to the well-being of every member of our community, and sensitivity to signs of trouble. Middlebury is a small, caring community that provides many support systems for students through our residential life staff, Commons Deans, the Counseling Service, and other offices. Nevertheless, we will be talking further about the ways in which we identify and help students in crisis, recognizing that any response to threatening or dangerous behavior is ultimately less effective than trying to prevent it.
— Ronald D. Liebowitz
President, Middlebury College