New Exercise Starter Kits for Cybersecurity, Hurricanes, and Active Shooter Scenarios

 

The Campus Resilience (CR) Program is dedicated to helping colleges, universities, and the K-12 communities build, sustain, and promote resiliency to the threats that confront institutions across the nation. As part of this overall effort, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Academic Engagement (OAE) recently released three Exercise Starter Kits for the academic community. The CR Program Exercise Starter Kits are a set of tools and resources that will allow institutions of higher education (IHEs) to self-conduct tabletop exercises (TTXs). Exercises are a key component of preparedness and serve to reinforce an IHE's specific emergency plans, protocols, and procedures. They also serve as a mechanism for campus law enforcement, emergency management staff, and leadership to assess and validate preparedness, response, and recovery capabilities and identify areas for improvement.

 

The CR Program Exercise Starter Kits (PDF) are currently available in three scenarios: Cyber Breach, Hurricanes, and Active Shooter. Those interested in requesting the Exercise Starter Kits may do so by completing an online sign-up form. Each kit includes tools and a set of planning documents that contain pre-populated exercise content:

The Exercise Starter Kits are complementary to the CR Program's TTX series, which offers the National Seminar and Tabletop Exercise for Institutions of Higher Education ( NTTX), Regional Tabletop Exercises ( RTTX), and Leadership Tabletop Exercises ( LTTX) annually. Visit OAE's Resilience web page to learn more about the CR Program and to access resources for the academic community to address a range of threats or hazards affecting schools and campuses nationwide.

On June 5, the U.S. Department of Justice launched the Violence Reduction Response Center (VRRC), a new resource under the Bureau of Justice Assistance National Training and Technical Assistance Center (BJA NTTAC). The VRRC serves as a "one-stop shop" to help connect individuals as well as state, local, and tribal justice agencies with violent crime reduction training and technical assistance resources most appropriate for their communities. The VRRC comes to fruition approximately 7.5 months after it was first announced by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions as part of an overall plan to reduce violent crime in the U.S.

 

Individuals can seek assistance through the VRRC via phone or email, [email protected]. VRRC staff are available 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM ET, Monday through Friday via their toll-free number, 1-833-872-5174. The staff are able to direct callers to available trainings, grant-funding opportunities, and peers or subject-matter experts on violence reduction strategies. The goal is to reduce the time a caller needs to spend seeking out this information themselves from other federal agencies or partners. If a call or email comes in after business hours, the message will be returned within one business day.

 

For additional information on BJA NTTAC and the resources they provide including webinars, events, the naloxone toolkit, and other federal resources, please visit their website.

For additional trainings and events, access our searchable online calendar. 

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