Mississippi State prioritizes emergency preparedness, makes resources available for students, employees
Contact: Allison Matthews
STARKVILLE, Miss.āĻć½¶Ö±²„ is taking advance precautions against potential emergency scenarios with several upcoming training sessions planned, including preparation for an active shooter scenario.
āWe feel preparedness is crucial, and we want to equip our students, faculty and staff to maximize their safetyāeven in the event of the worst-case scenarios, which we hope Ļć½¶Ö±²„will never face,ā said Vice President for Student Affairs Regina Hyatt.
Ļć½¶Ö±²„Emergency Manager Brent Crocker said the following upcoming training sessions, as well as other preparedness resources, are being implemented in coming weeks as the university continues to make preparedness a top priority.
July 26 and 28, Live Simulation TrainingāĻć½¶Ö±²„is hosting two simulations with Ļć½¶Ö±²„Police responding to a hypothetical active shooter situation. The location will be determined closer to the date.Ā
August 4, Active Shooter TabletopāA subset of the Ļć½¶Ö±²„Crisis Action Team will work through a hypothetical scenario of an active shooter on campus. The university has invited local law enforcement and emergency response personnel to participate. This group includes the Starkville Police Department, Oktibbeha County Sheriffās Office, Mississippi State Highway Patrol, Starkville-Oktibbeha School District and Oktibbeha County Emergency Management Agency.
The scenario is provided by the Department of Homeland Security School Safety Task Force. Ļć½¶Ö±²„Crisis Action Team members participating will include Hyatt, who routinely serves as the teamās Incident Commander, along with Crocker and Interim Associate Vice President for Student Success and Dean of Students Thomas Bourgeois, Associate Vice President for Administration Les Potts, Ļć½¶Ö±²„Chief of Police Vance Rice, Chief Communications Officer Sid Salter and Director of Veterans and Military Affairs Brian Locke.
August 23, Active Shooter TrainingāAn Active Shooter Training session for university employees will take place at 3 p.m. in Fowlkes Auditorium. It is listed on the Human Resources Learning Library at: . Departments wishing to host a training session should contact Brent Crocker at jcrocker@saffairs.msstate.edu.
The Mississippi State Personnel Boardās āActive Shooter Situationsā training program is still required for new employees and is available for current employees to review: .
Campus Emergencies VideoāAll students and employees are urged to watch a video online at and make an emergency plan.
Everbridge Mobile AppāMSUās emergency app now contains links to emergency procedures, including active shooter situations. Download the Everbridge App from any app store and follow the instructions found at . Tap the shield icon to access emergency response information.
For more information on emergency guidelines, preparedness and training, or MSUās Maroon Alert system, visit .
Ļć½¶Ö±²„is Mississippiās leading university, available online at .