Mills College will soon release a new safety protocol.
According to Barbara Haber, Interim Associate Vice President of Campus Planning and Facilities this protocol will detail the circumstances under which Public Safety will issue a “stand in place,” or a partial or total campus evacuation. Stand in place means that persons must take shelter in the nearest building and not leave that location until Mills officials lift the lockdown.
Haber said that this protocol is necessary because it creates “a balance between safety and disruption of what’s going on, on campus. You know, things like classes or events.”
The protocol will also define safety terms. According to Renee Jadushlever, Vice President for Operations, this will be done so that everyone on campus has the same understanding of what is happening in a safety situation.
Haber said she thinks following directions is one of the most important aspects of safety. “When [Public Safety] take[s] an action, the entire campus community needs to do what’s being asked. We take this seriously.”
Haber said that Public Safety will e-mail a copy of this protocol to the Mills community by the end of January.
Jadushlever first announced plans for this change after a lockdown was issued on Sept. 23, 2008. At the time, Oakland police were engaged in a stand off with a suspected criminal at a house near Seminary Ave. Many people on campus were confused about the language used in the emergency notification system messages, and did not know what to do.
