UTMB HANDBOOK OF OPERATING PROCEDURES

Section 7 Student Policies Subject 7.1 Student Services and Activities Policy 7.1.8 Student Release During Emergency Weather

05/20/93 -Originated 08/01/08 -Reviewed w/ changes -Reviewed w/o changes Council of Deans -Author

Student Release During Adverse Conditions

Policy

During adverse conditions, the safety of students who may be in classes on Galveston Island, or who may be planning to travel to Galveston to attend classes, is a primary concern. Except in rare instances where students are also employees, they are not involved in the operations of the institution. Therefore, there is no necessity for their presence in emergency weather conditions. UTMB classes will be suspended and students in all schools within the institution will be released based on decisions made by UTMB executive leadership. Students should not expect to use UTMB facilities as a shelter for themselves or their dependents during an emergency.

Implementation

An official announcement of class dismissal will be made by the Vice President for Education or Institutional Emergency Preparedness Officer at the time the decision is made to implement this policy. Students are not dismissed until the time of that official announcement.

Monitoring Emergency Status

The Office of Public Affairs will provide regular institutional condition updates and information via the following venues: • the UTMB hotline at (409) 77-ALERT (772-5378) or toll free at (888) 772-5449; • the UTMB Alert web page at http://www.utmb.edu/alert; • the UTMB main home page: http://www.utmb.edu; or • a backup web site (activated if primary web sites fail) at http://utmbinfo.com. Students are also encouraged to register for First Call, UTMB’s automated, multi-venue emergency notification system. Details are at http://www.utmb.edu/emergency_plan/FirstCall.asp

References

UTMB Emergency Operations