N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 7 P A G E 1 T O P I C S

Are You Pre-

pared /Active

Shooter?

Chemical Safety

Information At

your Fingertips

NOVA Police Host

International Stu-

dents

Plan 2 Ways

Out

Staying Safe

of the Road

Do You Know…?

Trunk Or Treat

NOVA Police

Training

S E L E C T E D

P O L I C E

S E R V I C E S

Escorts to vehicles

Motorist assists

Crime prevention

and response training

Lost and found

Child safety seat

installation and

assessment

Police Dispatch

(703) 764-5000

Call Us 24/7/365

Are You Prepared for an Active Shooter Incident?

An active shooter situation occurs when a person or persons with a deadly weapon is actively, sys-tematically, and presently employing these weapons against victims, even upon arrival of the police. While the prospect of an active incident is scary, it is most unlikely you’ll ever be harmed by an ac-tive shooter. There are 28 million college students in the US in over 5000 colleges, and on average, 10 college students die each year on campus at the hand of an active shooter. (Probability=3.6 x 10 to the minus 7). You are more likely to die due to a texting driver (11 people die/day). Even though the odds of confronting an active shooter are low, remember that the innocents at Uumqua Commu-nity College in Oregon; Newtown, CT; Las Vegas, the Washington Navy Yard; and Charleston, SC never expected to confront this deadly threat. The following themes may help keep you safe: 1. Expect the unexpected. Today’s friend/colleague could be tomorrow’s shooter. Look at people

critically. Look for behavioral changes; suspicious packages; inappropriate dress (e.g., a long coat on a summer day could conceal a rifle); seeming depression; absenteeism; loss of interest in school, friends, and favored activities; etc.)

2. If you see something that makes you uncomfortable or arouses your suspicion, report your con-cerns immediately to the NOVA College Police at 703-764-5000. The police rely on infor-mation from the entire NOVA community to keep our campuses safe and will investigate/respond to all reports. The LiveSafe mobile safety app, available at no cost to the NOVA com-munity, is a great way of providing emergency information in an unobtrusive and, if desired, an anonymous way.

3. Police may not arrive on the scene to respond to an active shooter for several minutes. During this time, take steps for your own safety. Develop a plan for each location you frequent.

4. Time is critical. Be prepared to act decisively and commit to survive: In the event of an active shooter on campus, you have three options, which are summarized in an excellent active shooter response video found on the NOVA Police website http://www.nvcc.edu/police/training.html

Run. Evacuate the area immediately. If you can evacuate, this may be your best chance of survival! Even if the shooter is approaching you, you are more likely to sur-vive by running away, since a moving target is difficult to hit. Furthermore, if you are injured, you will receive medical attention sooner if you can evacuate the building. Hide. If you cannot evacuate, lock the doors; turn off lights, pagers, and silence cell phones; hide behind articles such as desks as far out of view from windows as pos-sible; and remain quiet. Spread out; do not huddle together. Fight. If evacuation is not possible and you’re actually confronting the shooter, put-ting your life in imminent danger, go on the offensive. Yell, improvise weapons, throw articles, attack, and secure the shooter in a sustained attack to neutralize the shooter un-til help arrives. A shooter on the defensive will minimize your chance of injury.

5. Expect police to respond aggressively.

Don’t get in the way or contribute to an already confusing situation. The immediate goal of po-lice is to end the threat. They will not stop to help the wounded or assist evacuees.

Don’t allow yourself to be considered a suspect. Keep your hands visible and make no quick/unpredictable movements. Leave handbags and backpacks, which police will assume is hiding a bomb or weapon, in the classroom or office.

NOVA Police will offer detailed active incident response training open to all students, faculty and staff during November. Check the last page of this newsletter for specific campus locations and times. If you want to receive this training at your class, division meeting, club or some other venue, contact the NOVA Police Department’s Outreach Officer, Officer Juan Cardenas at jcardenas@nvcc.edu or via dispatch (703-764-5000) or his cell (703-539-9319).

P A G E 2

Chemical Safety Information at your Fingertips

Every day, our labs and classrooms use chemical materials to accomplish our academic mission. Safely handling, stor-ing, and managing these materials is NOVA’s top priority to ensure our labs operate safely. NOVA faculty, staff, and students have access to safety information for all chemical materials they use in the form of Safety Data Sheets (SDS) or Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS). These documents contain information on the po-tential hazards (health, fire, reactivity and environmental) and how to work safely with the chemical product. The SDS includes information such as the properties of each chemical; the physical, health, and environmental health hazards; protective measures; and safety precautions for handling, storing, and transporting the chemical. NOVA implemented MSDSonline to manage the College’s chemical inventory. Faculty, staff, and stu-dents can log onto www.msdsonline.com on a computer or mobile phone to obtain the latest safety in-formation for chemical materials they are using in their lab. Login information is provided to campus departments for all faculty and staff to manage their chemical materials. Students can ask their class-room lab instructors for access to MSDSonline.

NOVA Police have a two-fold mission at the College: to protect and to serve. Often, people largely as-sociate the former with police. They are less aware of how police serve the community. NOVA Police do many things to serve the community, such as: training to empower individuals to deter predators and protect themselves against crime; publishing and distribute the Public Safety Newsletter, hosting safety-related events on campus, participating in programs to feed the hungry and giving gifts to children during holidays. This year, NOVA Police have added a new service: an officer is serving as a social host for two international students. Lt. John Weinstein, who oversees the department’s strategic planning and outreach activities, is hosting two Colombian students: Camila Colorado and Natalia Martinez. When asked what influenced him to serve in this capacity, Weinstein related that as a college student, he spent his junior year in Colombia where he studied at a university. “I was a stranger in a strange land”, Weinstein related. “My Spanish was not that great when I arrived, I didn’t have any friends, and I missed my family. I met a local who kept an eye out for me and this made all the difference in the world. This is my opportunity to give back and help make my students’ experi-ence productive, fun and safe.” International students reside locally; not with their social hosts. As a social host, Weinstein is obligated to meet with the students monthly to ensure they are well, facilitate resolu-tion of any problems, and show them a bit of America. Weinstein has already met with the students twice on campus and, along with his wife, taken them to “Big Buns Damn Good Burgers” in Ballston.

NOVA Police Host International Students

Lt. Weinstein with Camila & Natalia

P A G E 3

NOVA Police Host International Students (Cont’d)

“The girls said they love hamburgers but had been enjoying them only at McDonalds and Burger King. I figured it was time to introduce a little change in their lives”, Weinstein laughed. Future plans, over and above monthly campus meetings, include a baseball game, a police ride-along, a Thanksgiving meal with family, the Air and Space Museum, and tours of the White House and Capitol. Their attendance at NOVA is their first time abroad. Camila and Natalia noted it’s difficult to be away from home and how their families play a central role in their lives. “We feel protected, knowing we can call our social host at any time and he’s available to help us”, Natalia said. Camila chimed in “And the fact he’s a police officer makes us feel even safer. It’s easy to be with John and his wife, Audrey, and we can be ourselves with them.” Natalia agreed. “As much as we love being in the United States, going to a new school and using a new language is very challenging, especially without our usual support structure. Our social hosts make it a lot easier to be successful and enjoy our unique experience.” “Hosting an international student is both fun and rewarding, and I will do it again”, said Weinstein. NO-VA faculty and staff interested in having a positive and unforgettable impact on a student can learn more about the program by contacting Kelly Forbes, Program Coordinator, Community College Initiative Pro-gram at (703) 503-6334 (office), (703) 919-9300 (cell), or at kforbes@nvcc.edu. In a fire, your safety could depend on an effective evacuation plan with multiple points of exit. For addi-tional information on fire safety, contact NOVA’s Office of Emergency Management and Safety at 703-764-5043 or oem@nvcc.edu.

Plan 2 Ways Out

P A G E 4

Staying Safe on the Road (Hotel Safety)

Safe travel depends on circumstances often beyond your control. The horrific events in Las Vegas remind us that no hotel is immune to attacks, break-ins, fires and theft. The biggest mistake people make is to assume others can assure their safety. They cannot! You must empower yourself to take charge of your own security. With the holidays approaching and people travel-ing to spend time with family and friends, here are some “rules for the road” to help you stay safe. 1. Choose a safe hotel. Before making your reservation, check to see if your hotel is located in a safe

neighborhood. Read the reviews to see if the hotel has a security problem. Is there a police station nearby? Call the hotel and ask if the front desk is staffed around the clock by multiple people. After hours, can the general public access the hotel lobby? Is the parking lot well lit and monitored by se-curity? Does the hotel use programmable cards instead of actual keys? Do the rooms have deadbolt locks and a security chain on the door? Does the hotel offer safe for storage of your valuables? (Don’t trust the safe in your room; a thief could carry it off if not bolted down.

2. Exercise care when making reservations. Book your room with your first initial, and if you are a fe-male traveling alone, you may want to include “Mr. and Mrs.” on your reservation. Ask for a room near the elevator, where there is more foot traffic to deter would-be thieves, and ask to stay on floors 3-6 (robbers don’t like to get too far from the street and fire/rescue equipment generally doesn’t reach beyond the 6th floor.

3. Don’t get checked out when checking in. Keep your luggage at your feet to reduce the threat of theft. Your name and room number should not be announced; they should be in writing. Hand your credit card directly to the clerk. Do not place it on the counter where an on-looker could see your account number. Finally, program hotel reception’s phone number into your cell for use in an emergency.

4. Don’t get trapped in or followed from the elevator. Be the last to enter the elevator and don’t select your floor until everyone else has selected theirs. Stand in front of the push-button pad so you can stop the elevator and get off, if need be. Wait for everyone else to exit the elevator before you do to avoid being followed to your room.

5. Staying safe in your room. Have your key in hand as you approach your room. Fumbling for it in front of your door diverts your attention and makes you vulnerable. Check all places someone can hide as well as the locks on windows and doors to adjoining rooms. Cover the peephole to prevent people from observing movement in your room. You may want to bring a rubber wedge with you for extra security. If someone knocks on your door, don’t let them in just because they say they’re with the hotel. Ask them to wait and call the front desk (you wrote down their number when you checked in, remember?) and confirm an employee is coming to your room. When you leave the room, close the curtains, leave the lights and television on so passersby will consider the room occupied, and hang a “do not disturb sign” on your door.

6. When out and about. Since you are not familiar with the area and you may be perceived by local thugs as a visitor, you must exercise additional situational awareness. Avoid using your cell phone when walking. If your attention is riveted to your device, you make yourself vulnerable to predators. Do not carry your valuables with you, and carry only as much cash and credit cards as you are likely to need, and keep these items in a side pocket. Do not carry a pocketbook, backpack or computer case if you can help it. Finally, do not announce your whereabouts and itinerary when you are on the road. Wait until you return home so people on so-cial media will not know you’re out of town.

Don’t be complacent! Just because you have never been robbed or assaulted doesn’t mean you will never be victimized by predators. Be skeptical and pay atten-tion to what’s happening around you when traveling and everyday. Have a great trip!

P A G E 5

Do You Know…?

Cell phone use while driving leads to 1.6 million crashes each year and more than 330,000 injuries. 3,477 deaths were caused in 2015 by distracted drivers. Your vehicle can travel up to 100 yards when you take your eyes off the road to text. It is illegal in Virginia for anyone under 18 years of age to use a cell phone while driving. It is illegal in Virginia to manually enter multiple letters into a device or read any email or text mes-

sage transmitted to or stored within the device. 94% of teens acknowledge the dangers of texting while driving but 35% admit to doing it anyway.

Stay alive. Don’t text and drive!

On October 20th, 2017, the NOVA Police Department participated in the Annandale campus’s “Trunk or Treat” event hosted by NOVA’s Volleyball team and the local Muscular Dystrophy Association. NOVA Police also participated in Prince William County’s very first annual “Trunk or Treat” event on October 26th, 2017. The event took place the Manassas Mall parking lot and was free to the community. There was a great show of support by parents, community members, law enforcement, and other first responders to provide a safe trick or treating environment for the community’s children at both events.

Trunk Or Treat

Princesses love candy. Thank you Officer Fisher. Officer Cardenas with a lion cub.

P A G E 6

2017-2018 NOVA Police Training

NOVA Police conduct an active community outreach program. The following training topics will be conducted in the 2017-2018 school year. If any of these times are inconvenient, or there are other public safety topics that interest you, please contact Community Outreach Officer Juan Cardenas, at jcardenas@nvcc.edu or 703.539.9319. If accommodations are needed, please notify Officer Juan Cardenas at least a week prior to any presentation you are interested in at-tending.

Active Shooter Response November 13, Loudoun Campus, from noon - 1 p.m. Room LR 223 November 14, Medical Education Campus, from noon - 1 p.m. Room 353 November 15, Annandale Campus, from noon - 1 p.m. Room CM 218 November 16, Woodbridge Campus, from noon - 1 p.m. Room WS 228 November 20, Alexandria Campus, from noon - 1 p.m. Room AA459 November 21, Manassas Campus from noon - 1 p.m. Room MH 210

September—Staying Safe on the Streets (with Self-Defense Considerations)

October — Alcohol Awareness/DUI November — Active Shooter Response December — Dealing With Difficult People January — Staying Safe in the Classroom February — How to Recognize/Report Suspicious Behavior March — Crimes Against Women April — Staying Safe While Using Uber/LIFT May — Identity Theft