EVPECC Council Minutes for Thursday, April 17, 2008

 

Attendees:

Audrey Dodson Breeden, HR/ISDS/Risk Mgt.
Nykki Critzer, Housing Division
Gina Correll, Sponsored Programs
Loretta Cronk, President’s Office
Karen Downs, Bookstore/Cav Cmpts
Jennie James, Audit Dept
Sarah McComb, Housing Division
Barbara Prettyman, Development
Anna Rugo, Business Operations
Rachel Spraker, Parking Operations
Laura Sprung, ITC
Reggie Steppe, Facilities Management
Krisztina Ujvagi-Roder, Student Affairs
Shannon Wampler, Procurement Services

Beth Reinhard, HR ex officio
Kathleen Jump, EVP-COO, ex officio

Council Business

 

Old Business

  1. Approved March meeting minutes
  2. Discussed Sam’s Club membership:

Jennie James, Audit Dept:

    • Barbara Deily, Chief Audit Executive didn’t feel we should use U.Va. emails. They  consulted with Rick Kast, Associate General Counsel, on this issue.
    • To check with UHR to include in benefits package vs. actually sending emails to employees about Sam’s.

Kathleen Jump, EVP-COO, ex officio:

  • Details on this section are pending
  1. Parking & Transportation:

Laura Sprung, ITC:

    • Double checked to be sure all questions were answered.

Rachael Spraker, P & T:

    • The “MW” on the back of the buses doesn’t mean anything.  It’s actually a digital sign problem with the display on the back
  1. Educational Benefits (see email)

      Audrey Dodson Breeden, Leadership:

  • Provides $2,000 per year
  • It’s for everyone, classified and University staff. 
  • Money resides in UHR, not with supervisor in department.
  • Can be used anywhere, U.Va., PVCC, for personal or professional development improvement, skills or degree.

 Rachel Spraker, P & T:

  • Reimbusement assist still exists, tax impact $3,700. (More information)
  • May 30 to be announced and more information will be out.

  Kathleen Jump, EVP-COO, ex officio:

  • Centrally funded.  Career pathing, continue to improve, achieve.

Guest speaker:

Marge Sidebottom, Director of Office of Emergency Preparedness:
(Previously at Medical Center for twenty one years, fifteen years in emergency preparedness.)
Call or email her if you have any questions: 924-8745 mls9m@Virginia.EDU

    • Need for an office identified two years prior to VA Tech incident.  Creation of the office had been approved and slated for Fall 0f 2007.
    • Goal is how to mitigate, prepare, respond, recover and use our resources wisely.
    • Office is one of coordination:
    • Critical incident management plan is on the web
    • Series of annexes (bomb or terrorist threat)
    • Continuity of operations plan (created last year)
    • We received second higher grade, first place was one that we helped write. New submission to state is due June 1st and will include the pandemic influenza plan.
    • She’s working with contacts in individual departments for plan, going well.
    • Pandemic influenza (been working on for two years)
    • Plan resources appropriately listed, double check plan that’s reasonable and workable.
    • Every department at U.Va. will need to have a plan. She’s standardized them for each department.
    • Two years ago U.Va. won a Disaster Resistant University FEMA grant.
    • VA Department of Emergency Management manages the FEMA grant of the four different components:  mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery (timeline, resources priorities) We are engaged in the mitigation phase.
    • Collaborative part, continue engaging with city and county.  Started through efforts of Leonard Sandridge twenty years ago.   All three jurisdictions integrated together with joint governance.
    • A joint 911 dispatch center is in place with city and county.  She gets calls now, too, as well as U.Va. Police Chief Mike Gibson, and Executive VP and Chief Operating Officer Leonard Sandridge.

            Audrey Dodson Breeden, Leadership Development:

  • Why wasn’t there a text message about the I-64 shootings?

Marge Sidebottom, Director of Office of Emergency Preparedness:

  • It was eight-plus miles away, and since it wasn’t a threat to U.Va. a determination was made that we wouldn’t use text.  Only email went out in morning with follow-up as needed.
  •  Doesn’t feel we’ll be using text unless there is a real and credible threat.  There are others ways of communicating.  Over use of text messaging can desensitize population. 
  • We also thought it was important in the I-64 event to have everyone stay where they were.   Learn to listen to radio, go through local media.
  • Some employees were worried because they were going to be late to work, but no different from other issues, they could have called office if they were late because of the traffic diversion at I-64reason. 
  • In the past she drew a matrix in the LEPC meeting, which included terrorism and mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. All agencies including police, fire, hospitals and U.Va. were asked to fill out the most important thing. Good communication was the number one thing that came out of it.  A six million dollar federal grant was awarded to purchase communication equipment.  The local area trains together and exercises twice a year.  Every third year there is an airport exercise.
  • Emergencies that can happen that they want to be prepared for:
    • Naturally occurring (snow, earthquakes, etc.)
    • Technological events (no power, water phones, computers, gas or able to get gas due to power outage)
    • Human events (hostage, restraining orders, shooter on Grounds)
    • Chemical (biological, nuclear events)
  • Focus will be on communication (always the thing that fails)
    • This year in addition to text messaging, email component to that.  Sign up separately for each component.  Built a stand alone emergency only email system, checked for volume (58K email), timing (to deliver, time takes ten minutes, in most eight minutes.  Still reviewing, feels good about time.)
    • The U.Va. home webpage would be replaced with one that didn’t have graphics, just emergency information.  It will be deployed from one single area, and will be well vetted—most current information will be put on top with older kept at bottom.  It is backed up out of state in case issues here. (Like the tornado test one we recently had.)
    • A siren system for people outside who may be unable to take cover is being installed.
    • The siren will have a public address capability as well.  Five or six hubs of communication covering the grounds will be in place this summer, can be utilized in the fall, and may be able to hook into fire alarm system in future.
    • Also, working with Facilities Management where there might be a designated person in a call group to receive urgent messages.  The 911 center will deploy messages through reverse 911 feature.   They will be responsible to alert rest of their department (still in addition to other ways).
    • LCD screens numerous areas including Newcomb Hall and Aquatic and Fitness Center have ability to run emergency urgent message.
    • Checking on where there may need to be other screens.
    • “Shelter and place”:  A lot of people called asking where to go during an emergency.  Gerald Drumhiller (Fire) also Architects office will spend time over the summer trying to determine safest location for departments.  If unsure, safest areas are bathroom, interior vs. exterior walls.
    • “Evacuation”:  Designate a person who will be able to say everyone is out.  Be sure to help people with disabilities, hearing impaired who couldn’t hear emergency alert, etc.  Work as a team in our locations.
    • Two pages on emergency preparedness has been included in the new orientation booklet.
    • People mentioned training for emergency preparedness.  Everyone at U.Va. is actually supposed to have terrorism training. She took test online, lastest sixty minutes.  Had a lot more information than really needed to know.  She called Commonwealth Preparedness, advised them it was unacceptable.  (No one would take that much time to do it.)  Asked if they would give her the
    • opportunity to write module with more information rather than potentials (get off dwelling on National emergency, use common sense, then they’ll share with everyone else). She’ll have others look at what she’s written to be sure on target.  There will be an online course.  She’s working on creating a poster with information for all first years and parents.  It will, also, be put on website under emergency plan. There is a community class provided. Check CERT webpage.  CERT citizens emergency response team.  Environmental Health and Safety has done it, also a student group will be doing it.  For more information contact Marge Thomas at 911:  971-1263.  They’ll be setting up a schedule.  A special one will be done on Grounds next year.  Also, FBI and other agencies are being worked with for more interesting courses maybe for fall.
  • In answer to a question sent to her.  Person asked what are the implications if we don’t sign the part of our EWP that mentions emergency participation expectations:
    • She mentioned that during Katrina she spent ten hours a day for twenty five days at the Hospital/Medical Center with people who wanted to assist.  She had to coordinate who could go, what the Federal requirements are, etc.  There are many other ways other then medical expertise that can be donated. 
    • Academic side can volunteer to share their home, EMT, carpentry skills, answer phone.  Everyone wanted to help in some way.  Problem outgrowth of Katrina episode is why the part is in EWP now.  Unlikely, we would be sent anywhere.  All that someone might be asked to do is help with phones.
    • Adjuct workforce, H/R corrected site.  A person could indeed sign up and volunteer if they like, it won’t be mandatory.  On this site one can list what they can do.  It’s isolated to us.  We can then send list to state in case of emergency. Basically, EWP is just letting people know something is expected from state employees.  She’s going to double check with colleagues to get a better answer for lady who asked, and all of us.
    • Amateur radio is another good form of communication in an emergency.  She’ll go after grant.  This form of media sets up a whole other ability to when very little else works in an emergency.

Rachel Spraker, P & T:

  • They use eight Mhz, would there be a problem with old system if it just communicates back and forth with buses.  Supervisor may be on different frequency.  Marge suggests she talk to Wayne Campagna in Emergency Communication.  He is coordinating the 800 Mhz communications for the area.   She indicated that buses are part of the emergency plan used to evacuate people or take employees to work .  Buses have always been part of Hospital emergency plan to evacuate.

 

            New Business:

  • Elder and Child care (see email):

            Kathleen Jump, EVP-COO, ex officio:

    • Details on this section are pending

Submitted by Anna Rugo