Welcome to the SF State University Emergency Preparedness web site

To the San Francisco State University Community:

Perhaps never in our nation’s history has the threat of disaster been so much on the minds of individual citizens, communities, government agencies and universities across the country.  In the years since 9/11, we have seen both natural and man-made major disasters, ranging from hurricane Katrina to the massacre at Virginia Tech.  While events such as these are both alarming and painful, they also serve to affirm the resolve of our nation, our communities and our college campuses to mitigate threats and prepare, not just to survive, but to prevail.

Ensuring the safety and well being of the San Francisco State community has always been a top concern for me.  This has historically been a very safe campus and I want you to know that a great many people continue to work together to keep it so.  We cannot provide absolute protection against disaster, but we can promise you that your safety will remain our highest priority.  This is work in which all of us – not just the University Police Department – have a role.

Within the pages of this revised multi-hazard plan, we have incorporated lessons learned from Virginia Tech, state-of-the-art information and technology, and earthquake science, to help provide the safest and most secure campus possible.

But however good our planning, our most essential resource is you, the individual members of this community, taking personal responsibility in times of crisis.  I urge you to become involved now by getting trained and working with the new SF State Office of Emergency Preparedness, to practice what this plan teaches.

Consider this your personal invitation to get involved.  Start by preparing a survival plan for yourself, your family and your workplace.  Use the planning guidelines provided in this document.  Join emergency response teams in your community.  Know that what you plan to do in an emergency is exactly what you will do. 

Make a plan – make a difference.

Sincerely yours,

Robert A. Corrigan
President

Download the Campus Multi-hazard Plan

---

	emergency NOTIFICATION SYSTEM SURVEY The Office of Emergency Preparedness is testing the SF State Emergency Notification System, and would like feedback from students, faculty, staff and other community members regarding the tests, in order to evaluate how well the system meets campus needs. Please complete this survey about your experience with emergency notifications sent on Thursday April 23, 2009.
	EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS TUTORIAL & QUIZ In this Emergency Preparedness tutorial you’ll learn about the resources you can put to work immediately to ensure your own safety, as well to assist others, in the event of an emergency.
	NERT This fall, the SF State Office of Emergency Preparedness is please to offer First Aid / CPR / AED Training and NERT (Neighborhood Emergency Response Team), to faculty and staff.  To participate in this training, please follow the registration process outlined here.
	First aid & CPR Training The University Police Department and The Office of Emergency Preparedness will provide First Aid/CPR/AED Training for SF State faculty and staff members, with classroom space available beginning Wednesday, October 8. For more information and a complete schedule, read more here.
	Shelter-In-Place One of the instructions you may be given in an emergency is to shelter-in-place. This means you should stay indoors until authorities tell you it is safe or you are told to evacuate. Read more here.
	What to do in an earthquake Information on what to do in case an earthquake strikes.
	Emergency Information - SF State Emergency Procedures - SF State Emergency Preparedness Tutorial

Q: What is the Emergency Notification System?

The San Francisco State Emergency Notification System is a communications tool designed to rapidly disseminate emergency information and instructions, in the event of an emergency that threatens the lives and/or property of the campus community.  This fully hosted, web-based system can disperse messages to phones, voicemail, e-mails, and via text messaging and TTY. 

Notification systems have become part and parcel of emergency preparedness strategies on college campuses across the country, in the wake of tragic campus shooting incidents at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University.  While this notification system is an important part of the emergency preparedness plan for SF State, we encourage all students, faculty and staff members to actively participate in preparedness training and information available through the Office of Emergency Preparedness and the University Police Department. Please contact Gayle Orr-Smith in the Office of Emergency Preparedness at (eprep@sfsu.edu) to learn more.

Q: Why have alert systems when we already have alarms in campus buildings?

While alarms are an effective way to evacuate a building, other types of emergencies, such as an active shooter incident, may require people to shelter-in-place.  Currently the best way to notify the campus in this type of situation is through a mass notification system.

Q: Why should I enter all of my contact information?

Multiple contacts help to ensure that you receive emergency information as quickly as possible wherever you may be.  While phone calls are the most immediate way to reach people, a text message for example, may be the best way to reach students and faculty during classes.  You may also be notified of a campus closure or cancellation of classes in the event of an emergency that impacts the campus over the weekend or at night.

Students who wish to add or update their contact information please go to: MySFSU and go to "Contact Information"

Faculty and staff members should log into the inside SF State portal.

Q: How often are these “tests” going to happen?

The “All Campus” test will be conducted once each semester, to ensure that new students, faculty and staff will have the opportunity to become familiar with the process and fully participate. An e-mail notice will be sent several days in advance of each test, to allow people to update their contact information and to avoid any undue alarm.

Courtesy Phones

Throughout the campus there are also yellow courtesy phones that can dial any campus extension. If you are near a yellow phone when an emergency situation arises dial 911 to connect to the University Police Dispatch Center.