By
Shana Heiser
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Separate departmental plans may be folded into single approach
During an on-campus crisis, such as a building evacuation or power outage, each part of the university responds with a different crisis plan.
But this may soon change.
The Cabinet Committee, appointed by University of Arizona President Peter Likins, wants ideas for a university-wide Crisis Management Plan.
Nothing is close to being finalized, though, said UA spokeswoman Sharon Kha- although individual, "well-thought-out crisis plans" are already in place.
"We're seeing if there is any way (plans) can be enhanced by looking at each other's plans," Kha said. "We may pick up some good ideas from one plan that may be helpful for other units to adopt."
Next week's Cabinet Committee meeting will be a brainstorming session, said Nancy Guthrie, associate vice president of advancement.
A comprehensive understanding throughout the university is long overdue, said Steve Holland, director of UA Risk Management and Safety.
"I think that a lot of the plans out there right now are very good plans, but there hasn't been anyone who has taken the bull by the horns to consolidate these, and that's hopefully what this will accomplish," he said.
Kha sent an internal memo to people on campus asking for outside input. The committee also wants to review all existing Crisis Management Plans to determine whether an overall plan is necessary.
"The president is trying to determine whether we need to have an overall management plan, and we're not clear yet that we do," Kha said.
Guthrie said now is the time
"It just makes sense to do this, this is a good time to look at that," she said. "We have a new police chief and provost, (so) it's always good to go back and review what you have in place in case an accident does happen."
No changes may be made if the committee finds the current crisis plans acceptable.
"We may decide that the way we handle it right now, through flexible leadership, is the best way," Kha said.
Even if the overall plan is revised, crises would be handled primarily by employees in their respective departments, Kha said, citing the Center for Computing Information and Technology as an example.
The centralization of current plans into a university-wide plan would pull together various entities at the UA, Guthrie said.
"It's really just a way to manage critical situations, to have a clear cut understanding of what everyone's function and role is," she said.
Folding separate crisis management plans into one that applies to the entire university would ease the chaos during a large-scale event, said Holland.
"My suspicion is President Likins is looking for crises that might arise on campus that have the potential to involve people from a number of areas," he said.
"I think it makes perfect sense to pull all of those various groups together and review where they might be overlapping."
