BPPM 50.72

For more information contact:
   Compliance and Civil Rights
   509-335-8288 / ccr@wsu.edu
   WSU Pullman Police Department
   509-335-8548 / police@wsu.edu

---

Contents

1.0 Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines and procedures for providing timely warnings and emergency notifications to the campus community, in accordance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). (20 USC 1092(f)) (See BPPM 50.39 for technical information regarding emergency notifications).

This policy aims to ensure the safety and well-being of all members of the University community.

2.0  Scope

This policy applies to all students, faculty, staff, and visitors at Washington State University (WSU), at all locations that WSU has identified as campuses in accordance with the Clery Geography Assessment Policy (BPPM 50.71). It covers situations involving crimes and emergencies that pose a potential threat to the safety and security of the University community.

WSU may also apply this policy to locations that are not identified as campuses (i.e. non-campus, public property, or other locations), if WSU has information that supports a timely warning or emergency notification for these locations.

3.0  Definitions

Timely Warning. A timely notification to the campus community about Clery Act crimes that occur on Clery geography that:

• Are reported to campus security authorities (CSAs) or local police agencies (see also BPPM 50.70 regarding CSAs.); and
• Are considered by the University to represent a serious or continuing threat to the safety of students, employees, or other members of the campus community.

Examples of reported situations requiring a timely warning include, but are not limited to:

• Residence hall burglaries;
• Hate crimes;
• Serial rapes;
• Date rape druggings; or
• Other incidents, events, and conditions (e.g., inclement weather).

Emergency Notification. An immediate notification issued to the campus community of a significant emergency or dangerous situation on campus that poses an immediate threat to the health or safety of students, employees, or other members of the campus community.

Examples of situations requiring an emergency notification include, but are not limited to:

• An outbreak of the coronavirus or some other serious illness
• A natural disaster
• A wildfire
• A terrorist incident
• An active shooter
• A hazardous chemical spill
• Significant facility failure

WSU System Clery Coordinator. The WSU Pullman Chief of Police serves as the WSU system Clery Coordinator and chair of the system Clery Committee.

4.0  Responsible Campus Departments

Each University site designated as part of WSU’s Clery geography (see BPPM 50.71) must designate a department or individual with primary responsibility for issuing timely warnings and emergency notifications. The responsible department/individual may also consult with other departments or agencies as described in this policy when determining whether timely warnings or emergency notifications are appropriate. (See Sections 5.2.a and 6.1.)

The following positions have been designated as responsible:

• WSU Bremerton:
  • Clery Coordinator/WSU Pullman Chief of Police or designee;
  • Olympic College Campus Security also issue timely warnings and emergency notifications to the Olympic College Community, including WSU employees and students through their opt-in alert system.
• WSU Everett: Building and Grounds Supervisor/Emergency Management or designee.
• WSU Pullman: Clery Coordinator/WSU Chief of Police or designee.
• Research and Extension Centers (RECs) and Extension offices offering for-credit courses: REC/Extension office Director and/or designee with support from Emergency Management and WSU Pullman Chief of Police or designee.

  RECs and Extension offices offering for-credit courses are designated as campus Clery geography. See Section 4.1 in BPPM 50.71.

• WSU Spokane/Yakima: Campus Safety and Security Manager or designee
• WSU Tri-Cities: Director, Campus Safety and Security or designee
• WSU Vancouver: Director of Public Safety and Police Services

Each responsible position must identify and train back-up designees to provide timely warnings and emergency notification leadership if the primary responsible position is unavailable. All responsible positions must be adequately trained on this policy and associated alert or distribution systems.

5.0  Timely Warnings

5.1    Criteria for Timely Warnings

Timely warnings are issued when a Clery Act crime occurs on Clery geography that is reported to CSAs or local police agencies and represents a serious or continuing threat to the safety of students or employees. The decision to issue a timely warning is made on a case-by-case basis, considering the following factors:

• The nature of the crime or incident
• The potential risk to the campus community
• The need to avoid compromising law enforcement efforts
• The potential impact on ongoing investigations

Timely warnings are not required with respect to crimes reported to professional counselors.

5.2    Issuance of Timely Warnings

5.2.a    Responsibility

The responsible campus department identified in Section 4.0 must issue any timely warnings. The department/individual responsible for issuing timely warnings works in coordination with the following entities, as needed, to gather accurate and timely information about the incident(s):

• Local law enforcement agencies;
• WSU Emergency Management;
• Campus Environmental Health and Safety (EHS);
• Campus Student Affairs;
• Compliance and Civil Rights (CCR;.
• Human Resource Services (HRS);
• Threat Assessment Team (TAT) (see EP42); and
• Any other University entity with relevant information.

Timely warnings are issued on a case-by-case basis, after the responsible department assesses the nature of the situation, the continuing danger to the campus community, and the possible risk of compromising law enforcement efforts.

The responsible department also provides prompt notice to the chancellor for situations requiring a timely warning on the chancellor’s campus.

5.2.b    Content of Timely Warnings

Timely warnings must include information that would enable members of the University community to take actions to protect themselves.

Examples of information to be included in a timely warning, when available:

• Nature of the crime/incident(s)
• The date, time, and location of the incident(s)
• Physical and/or behavioral characteristics of the suspect(s)
• Safety precautions and recommendations for the campus community

5.2.c    Distribution of Timely Warnings

Timely warnings are promptly distributed to the campus community through various channels, as appropriate, including, but not limited to any of the following:

• Email notifications to students, faculty, and staff
• Posting on the University’s official website
• University social media platforms
• Notices on bulletin boards in prominent campus locations
• Individual outreach to impacted individuals
• Host campus communication or alert systems

The preferred distribution channel for timely warnings is a combination of e-mail notifications to students, faculty, and staff, and social media platform(s) to reach a broader community audience. Distribution of timely warnings are targeted to the specific campus community (e.g., WSU Pullman, WSU Tri-Cities, WSU Spokane) who may benefit from the information.

6.0  Emergency Notifications

6.1    Responsibility

The responsible department must without delay issue emergency notifications upon confirmation of a significant emergency or dangerous situation on campus involving immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees.

The responsible department works in coordination with the following entities to assess and respond to the emergency:

• Campus law enforcement agencies;
• Campus security departments,
• WSU System Clery Coordinator,
• Campus EHS;
• WSU Emergency Management,
• Local law enforcement agencies, and
• Other relevant departments or agencies.

Confirmation of significant emergencies or dangerous situations is assessed by a department with appropriate expertise (e.g., public safety emergencies may be confirmed by campus safety or police, whereas hazardous material emergencies may be confirmed by campus EHS). See also BPPM 50.39.

The responsible department also provides prompt notice to the chancellor for situations requiring an emergency notification on the chancellor’s campus.

6.2   Content of Emergency Notifications

The responsible department:

• Determines the appropriate content of the notification;
• May withhold confidential information, names, or other identifying information of victims;
• Determines if withholding notification is appropriate, if disclosing information would compromise efforts to:
  • Assist a victim;
  • Contain or respond to an emergency; or
  • Otherwise mitigate an emergency.

Emergency notifications must also include:

• A concise description of the emergency or dangerous situation
• Instructions for immediate action or protective measures
• The date, time, and location of the emergency, if applicable
• Contact information for obtaining additional information or assistance

Note: Emergency notifications sent by text or SMS (e.g., social media) notification are subject to limitations on the total number of characters. In this instance, the message must reference where additional information is provided.

Emergency notifications must include information that would enable members of the University community to take actions to protect themselves. The responsible department, in consultation with other relevant departments and agencies, may also determine whether additional security steps are necessary, including:

• Securing University facilities, buildings, and/or residence halls;
• Directing individuals to safe locations;
• Modification to facility resources; or
• Other actions.

6.3   Distribution of Emergency Notifications

The responsible department, in consultation with other relevant departments and agencies, determines the appropriate community to notify. Distribution is based on the segments of the campus community who may be affected by an emergency situation or if a situation threatens the operations of the campus as a whole. Emergency notifications are distributed using rapid and effective means of communication, including, but not limited to, any combination of the following:

• WSU Alert system
• E-mail notifications to relevant students, faculty, and staff
• Posting on the University’s campus-specific WSU Alert webpage
• University social media platforms
• Notices on bulletin boards in prominent campus locations
• Public address systems in or outside campus buildings, if applicable
• Individual outreach to impacted individuals
• Host campus communication or alert systems

6.4   Continuing Assessment

The responsible department continues to assess an emergency situation as it unfolds and provides new or modified notifications as appropriate.

7.0  Testing and Training

To ensure the effectiveness of the timely warnings and emergency notification systems, regular testing and training exercises are conducted.

At a minimum, testing and training exercises is conducted annually. Testing includes tests of notification systems. Exercises involve relevant University departments, law enforcement agencies, campus security departments, and emergency management personnel to ensure that they understand their responsibilities. Tests are reviewed for effectiveness and functionality.

Tests and training records are to be documented and maintained in accordance with the University records retention schedule. Records must include a description, date, and time of each test or training activity, and whether the test was announced or unannounced.

8.0  Release of Personally Identifiable Information

In appropriate circumstances, WSU may release personally identifiable information in a timely warning or emergency notification, where the disclosure of information is related to health and safety emergencies and disclosure of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of students, employees, or other individuals.

9.0  Compliance and Review

The system Clery Coordinator (see Section 3.0) periodically reviews this policy and makes necessary updates to ensure compliance with the Clery Act and the changing needs of the campus community.

_______________________

Revisions:  July 2024 – new policy (Rev. 630).