Sometimes it’s a matter of life or death when disaster strikes, and ACC wants its students, faculty, and staff prepared to survive.

ACC is bringing emergency awareness to the forefront this September with Emergency Preparedness Week from Sept. 6-9. The goal is to educate students, faculty, and staff on the best actions to take if an emergency were to happen on campus.

“Having a weeklong discussion about emergency preparedness is an effective way to drive the preparedness message to the ACC community,” says Rebecca Cole, executive director of the Environmental, Health, Safety, and Insurance Department (EHSI), which directs emergency planning for the college. “This week will help ACC students, faculty, and staff recognize the importance of mentally preparing for the impact of a crisis or disaster on campus.”

During Emergency Preparedness Week, campuses and departments will have an opportunity to test, evaluate, and publicize emergency response plans and evacuation procedures. The college also will have an information campaign to educate students and employees on their roles in a campus emergency and how to protect their own health and safety. There also will be crime prevention and armed intruder seminars sponsored by ACC Police. | See story or download a flier.

An important promotion during the week will be to drive students, faculty, and staff to register their cellphones in the ACC Emergency Alert System. You can do this now by logging into Online Services and completing the steps.

Emergency Alerts can be lifesaving in a disaster, but you must add your cellphone number if you want to receive text messages or voicemail on your cellphone.

“There are many ways to inform you of an emergency, but ACC Emergency Alerts can put this information in the palm of your hand,” says Kristine Elderkin, ACC’s emergency management coordinator. “We encourage you to sign up now because it will be too late if disaster strikes.”

September’s Emergency Preparedness Week coincides with National Preparedness Month, an annual event organized by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The theme this year is “A Time to Remember. A Time to Prepare,” in honor of the 10th anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks.

Unlike its annual counterpart, Emergency Preparedness Week will be held each semester at ACC in order to reach incoming students with important emergency information and Emergency Alert signup. The spring event will be Jan. 30-Feb. 3.

“While we are raising awareness this week, emergency preparedness and planning is something that should be part of a person’s everyday life at home and at work – not just this designated week, but always in the back of their mind so they are ready and prepared,” says Cole.

Visit www.austincc.edu/emergency for more information on emergency preparedness. To stay updated on critical information, like ACC on Facebook and follow ACC on Twitter.