Increased Safety Measures and Safeguards

Pursuant to California Education Code section 67380, each UC campus is required to provide information regarding special safeguards that have been established for particular facilities or activities in the preceding 18 months to increase safety, and any changes in safety precautions expected to be made during the future 24 months. You can review the full plan detailing current and future safety measures in the 2024 Campus Safety Plan.

As of fall 2024, actions in the past 18 months to increase safety include:

Active Shooter Recovery Tabletop Exercise conducted with campus leadership and key operational stakeholders;
new Emergency Response Guide published to provide students, staff, and faculty with information on how to respond when faced with a variety of hazards and incidents;
Emergency Preparedness Training provided to students, staff, and faculty providing an overview of the campus environment, emergency alert system, response procedures, and preparedness action items;
new well-marked and highly visible RCSP vehicle that RCSP staff uses to conduct community checks in the Affiliated Residential Community Housing areas (Family Student Housing, University Town Center, The Village, Graduate Student Housing);
use of electric carts for RCSP staff to respond to calls more quickly within the residential college areas;
tabling at Cornucopia (major fall quarter welcome event) to educate students about available services RCSP provides, including lock-outs, facilities emergencies, safety walking escorts;
partnership between RCSP and Emergency Medical Slugs (EMS) to provide on-site first aid at events and functions, including unplanned or unsanctioned events on weekend nights;
began offering staff De-Escalation Training of RCSP team for contacts with individuals with unique needs;
each RCSP staff member received a new highly portable first aid kit to be carried while in the community;
UCSC PD conducted several active shooter presentations to various campus units/departments;
UCSC PD conducted CPR training for dining services; and
UCSC PD conducted presentations for campus/traffic safety to maintenance staff and TAPS staff.

As of fall 2024, anticipated changes in safety precautions during the next 24 months include:

new on-demand Emergency Preparedness training developed as an eLearning course or to be delivered in-person or remotely;
implementation of an Individualized Emergency Evacuation Plan specifically tailored for individuals with Access and Functional Needs;
rollout of new Department Emergency Action Plans that meet Cal-OSHA Section 3220 requirements and include new language on Access and Functional Needs. Planning priorities are aligned with departments who contribute to Emergency Support Functions.
approval and implementation of the UC Santa Cruz Emergency Response Framework developed in alignment with the FEMA Comprehensive Planning Guide, which outlines how the University responds to incidents using proactive mechanisms and sets the foundation for the development of function specific annexes;
additional electric carts to be deployed to other zones to increase mobility and response time of RCSP staff;
De-Escalation Training to be provided to the entire RCSP Department for contacts with individuals with unique needs.
continued tabling at the Fall 2024 and 2025 Cornucopia (major fall quarter welcome event) to educate students about the services RCSP provides;
increased involvement in orientation programs to familiarize students with RCSP staff and their roles;
implementation of Silvertrack software for CSA program to facilitate real-time processing and photo assist for more timely incident reporting;
begin to replace aging patrol vehicles which are frequently unavailable due to maintenance or service issues;
increase training opportunities for sworn staff members;
seek grant funding for Dispatch Center improvements and upgrades;
seek IACLEA accreditation by October 2024; and
increase safety training presentations for campus by UCSC PD.