SEDALIA—In the wake of Thursday’s shooting at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, State Fair Community College will still conduct a scheduled test of its emergency notification systems Friday.
The test will take place in the morning, said SFCC President Dr. Joanna Anderson.
“Our hearts go out to all those at Umpqua Community College in Oregon,” said Anderson. “We are deeply saddened at the tragedy that occurred on their campus Thursday. We know that even our best preparation and safety precautions cannot prevent such acts of violence. This test is just one way we can increase awareness and check our system.”
During the test, a message will be broadcast over the loudspeakers located in public areas and hallways on the Sedalia, Boonville, Clinton, and Lake of the Ozarks campuses, and students, employees, and community members who have signed up to receive text and/or email notifications will receive a message explaining that the notification is a test of the system and not a real emergency.
Test messages will also be posted to SFCC’s Facebook and Twitter accounts and on www.sfccmo.edu/alertupdates, a web page for the public to stay informed to any emergency situation. Students, faculty, staff, and community members can visit www.sfccmo.edu/sfccalert for instructions on opting in for emergency text messages and how to update their contact information.
The Association of Community College Trustees and the American Association of Community Colleges issued this statement Thursday afternoon:
“Today, a tragedy occurred at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. We are deeply saddened by these events, and our thoughts and prayers are with all those affected by the shooting. Sadly, these types of occurrences are not unheard of at community colleges. We are committed to supporting on-campus safety and security measures at our colleges, with a priority emphasis on prevention whenever possible.
“While campus safety is of the utmost priority, due to their open nature, college and university campuses are susceptible to these types of events. There are still many questions surrounding what happened at Umpqua today, and it may take a while before we have answers. In the meantime, we stand with our friends at Umpqua Community College and offer them our full support.”
