The safety and security of students, employees, and the community remain the top concern for Austin Community College District (ACC). In advance of the spring 2023 semester, the ACC District Police Department (ACCDPD) hosted a Critical Incident Response Active Attack scenario at the Round Rock Campus.
In preparation for the live scenario, ACCDPD officers, Travis County Constables Precinct 5, and Round Rock ISD Police personnel participated in tabletop scenarios throughout the week to practice everything they learned in training.
The campus shut down at 5 p.m. on Friday, January 13, for the scenario. Officers arrived at the Round Rock Campus to get an initial briefing, which consisted of a presentation, group discussions, and a walkthrough of the campus.
While Incident Command Team personnel were briefing officers, another briefing was being held simultaneously for the 26 ACC employees and Round Rock Police Department Citizens Police Academy volunteers who signed up to be role players. They played the part of faculty, staff, and injured victims during a mock attack to help make the scenario as realistic as possible.
After the briefings, role players were put in their assigned spots, and officers were placed outside the campus to prepare to respond to a report of an attack. The scenario lasted two hours.
View photos from the scenario in the slideshow below.
Preparing to respond to critical incidents
The ACC District Police Incident Command team has been training officers on how to effectively respond to a critical incident on campus since 2016. The training cycle begins shortly after the start of the semester and has ACCDPD officers along with law enforcement officers from surrounding agencies participate in training at the Hays Public Safety Training Center. Instruction at the facility involves breaching, building clearing, firearms, tactical medicine (medical care during critical incidents), and effective communication with our agency partners. This training culminates in a Critical Incident Response Scenario at one of our campuses during intersession. Round Rock Campus was selected this year to host the scenario training in part because of its multi-building layout.
Ongoing training and preparation will continue throughout the semester. The college’s Spring 2023 Emergency Preparedness Week is January 30 – February 3 and includes drills and tips to help students and employees prepare for a possible emergency on campus. For more information, visit ACC’s Emergency Preparedness Week webpage.
