Kennesaw State‚ Cobb County police practice emergency response on campus

Kennesaw State University and Cobb County authorities participated in an emergency response drill Aug. 5 to test response plans and communication systems a week before students return to campus residences for the fall semester.(For the complete story‚ please click on the headline above.)

Georgia (Aug 5, 2008) — The call came in to the office of the biology and physics department at Kennesaw State University at about 9 a.m. Aug. 5.

Cindy Best‚ an administrative associate at the College of Science and Mathematics‚ took the call calmly. The caller told her there was a bomb in the science building.

But instead of panicking‚ she and dozens of KSU staff and faculty on Tuesday watched and learned how to operate in a crisis. Some took notes while others exited the building‚ before a high−tech robot removed and destroyed a simulated bomb.

The drill‚ code−named “Golden Owl II‚” was the second in a series of ongoing emergency training exercises aimed at boosting KSU’s responses to emergencies and improving communications during a crisis.

“I think it’s wonderful to go through a scenario like this‚ so that if the real thing occurs‚ we don’t panic‚” Best said. “It’s a very good thing knowing that there is a whole team at the university to help assist in an emergency.”

Kennesaw State’s department of public safety worked in conjunction with the Cobb County Police Department’s bomb squad in the drill‚ as did dozens of crisis managers from buildings across campus — faculty or staff members from each building designated key points of contact in the event of an emergency. There are about 200 crisis managers at KSU.

“The exercise was part of ongoing efforts to make sure that we know what to do during an emergency‚ and that both KSU and outside agencies work well together‚” said Robert Lang‚ assistant vice president for strategic security and safety. “It was also intended to find things that we can improve upon in the future.”

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 41,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the second-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 126 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.