University System of Georgia Strategic Plan
Strategic Goal One:
Renew excellence in undergraduate education to meet students’ 21st century
educational needs.
Strategic Plan in Action
Challenge
USG will provide safe and healthy campus environments.
Action
- Create a centralized communication process for handling disruptive and distressed persons.
- Develop training programs that will prepare USG faculty, staff, and students to be responsive to campus safety needs.
- Develop resources to update faculty, staff, and students on current laws, regulations, and confidentiality guidelines.
- Policies and procedures will be outlined in student handbooks and on school websites in order to provide a process for response.
- A databank will be developed and updated annually in order to provide campuses with current information for responding to health and safety issues.
- Hold an annual summit of health and safety professionals on a variety of topics of concern.
Activities for Implementation
Identify structure for centralized communications for disruptive and distressed persons. Offer health and safety training for faculty, staff, and students. Provide specialized training for mental health providers in:
- Crisis management
- Threat assessment
- Health and wellness
- Cultural competency
Clarify FERPA, HIPAA, ADA, Clery Act and state legal regulations regarding health, safety, and confidentiality for all campus professionals and responders. Establish protocols and policies to respond to distressed and disruptive persons. Best practices intervention set up to support the System in establishing health and safety policies and procedures, trainings, and information. Host an annual summit on mental health.
Baseline Measure
USG assessed all 35 institutions' current structure for handling communications for disruptive or distressed persons. Currently, training is offered by USG professionals, the Counseling Directors Association (CDA) in the state, and through institutional planned initiatives (consultants, planned training programs with invited or identified campus, local, state or national experts). All 35 institutions provide information in campus handbooks and other documents that provide clarification on some of these laws. Several institutions within the USG have policies and protocols to respond to distressed and disruptive persons. Counseling Directors Association (CDA) has a current list of best practices.
| 2009 Targets | 2009 Actual |
|---|---|
| Institutions to set up early intervention/ assessment team to handle communications. Teams to evaluate process and structure effectiveness. | Initiated review of USG resources to identify best practices. Discussions/conferences continue to identify best methods. |
| One training per semester to address health and safety on campus for faculty, staff, and students. Provide mental health professionals funding and support for continuing/ maintaining professional development activities. | Psychological first aid training programs being delivered to campuses. To prepare for Fall 2009, train-the-trainer program is being conducted regionally for emergency response. Assessment of institution constituents' needs is being completed. |
| System staff creates a website of resources that can be provided to campuses on laws that pertain to health and safety. | Subcommittee established to begin collecting data, web resources. Meetings w/OIIT completed to initiate web development. |
| All 35 institutions will have a threat-and-violence policy statement and clearly delineated procedures for handling distressed and disruptive persons. Coordinate with CDA to establish a regional network that will meet training and funding needs. | Initial collection, review and evaluation of existing policies/procedures in process. Postponed indefinitely due to budget constraints and availability of personnel to assist with the process. |
| Plan and invite speakers and register participants from all USG campuses as well as technical and independent campuses. | Postponed indefinitely due to budget constraints and availability of personnel to assist with the process. |
| 2010 Targets | 2010 Actual |
|---|---|
| Teams organized and provided simulation training to assess response and communication in handling distressed and disruptive persons. | Due to budgetary constraints on travel, etc., FY10 this target has been delayed. With grant funding under the Violence Against Women Act, training for violence prevention teams was conducted in May with goal of establishing teams at most institutions by FY 2011 end. |
| 1. Assess current training programs being offered on campus, at local, state, or regional level. 2. Develop training programs to address health and safety needs. | Due to budgetary constraints on the institutions, this target has been postponed. Each institution continues to review, evaluate their existing programs. |
| System develops information for campuses to access and develop ways to distribute to campus constituents. | Due to budgetary constraints this target is now being incorporated into the consolidated databank of best practices information for FY 2011. |
| All 35 institutions develop, update, and print in Student Code of Conduct the policy and procedure for handling distressed and disruptive students. Develop (and coordinate with CDA) a shared databank of best practices information for USG institutions. | Both delayed due to budgetary constraints on institutions ability to travel, attend meetings/ training. Information is being gathered in conjunction with the Counseling Directors Association of resources for students, staff/faculty and mental health professionals. |
| Plan and implement with CDA the first annual summit on mental health practices. | Tabled until FY 2011 when this target will be re-evaluated by the SHBI workgroup. |
| 2011 Target | 2011 Actual |
|---|---|
| Training done to inform community of protocol for emergencies, threats, or handling of specific students. | |
| 1. Participate in System-wide training at least once a semester for identified constituents. 2. Conduct institutional training at campus events, such as orientation, for faculty/staff or students, ongoing professional development offered, human resources programs, continuing education programs, etc. | |
| All 35 institutions access information and develop mechanisms for distribution to faculty, staff, students, and others. | |
| Develop a shared databank of best practices information for USG institutions. | |
| Plan and implement with System health center professionals an annual summit on best practices. | |
| Identify potential for annual summit on mental health practices. |
| 2012 Target | 2012 Actual |
|---|---|
| Institutions evaluate process set up to assess and respond to students. | |
| 1. Develop and assess current level of campus constituents' knowledge and skills through survey system. 2. Continue ongoing training at institutional level. | |
| Webcast developed at System level to educate on laws pertaining to health and safety. | |
| Develop USG initiatives in providing parents and family members resources that are identified in the databank. | |
| Plan and implement with System disability services professionals an annual summit on best practices. |