In an emergency, education can be the key to safety and survival. Knowing how to prepare and how to respond may mean the difference between life and death.
While education is not the Collin College Police Department’s primary role, it is one that Police Chief Bill Taylor takes seriously. As the college continues its rollout of a comprehensive safety plan, the department is taking the opportunity to improve its training and outreach efforts with students, staff, and faculty.
“Historically our campuses have been safe,” Taylor said. “However, we feel there are things we can do to make sure we are better prepared in case something bad does happen.”
That preparation includes more and better training opportunities for everyone on campus. The district’s safety plan calls for enhanced training initiatives in areas such as personal safety and awareness, self-defense, and threat assessment.
Officer Scott Knight taught eight Citizens Response to Active Shooter Events (CRASE) classes at the college in the spring of 2018. Built on an “Avoid, Deny, Defend” framework, the training covers techniques that students, staff, and faculty can use if they are ever involved in an active shooter incident. In short, the training teaches how to avoid the situation if possible, how to deny the shooter access to you if you cannot escape immediately, and the philosophy that what you do matters if the shooter makes it into the room. Knight cited research showing that demonstrating you are willing to fight for your life can be a deterrent to some shooters.
“Most criminals are looking for soft targets,” Knight said. “If you make yourself a hard target, they are more likely to move away from you to someone who is easier to take down.”
Although the techniques are different, the same philosophy of making yourself a harder target applies to self-defense courses the police department plans to offer soon.
Presented in cooperation with the college’s Student and Enrollment Services Office, the classes will teach participants how to avoid becoming the victim of a crime, abduction, or assault. Participants will be taught how to recognize potential dangerous situations as well as techniques for getting out of those situations if they occur.
Chief Taylor said he knows personally that classes like these make a difference. A similar class offered at Rice University when he was chief there received feedback from students who said they had evaded abductions and assaults because of what they learned.
The department also takes every opportunity it can to improve general crime prevention awareness. Taylor said Collin College police have taken part in safety fairs and other informational events throughout the district. Officers also regularly engage with students, staff, and faculty, providing advice to make campus environments more secure.
All of these education initiatives work in conjunction with the college’s safety plan, which identifies ways to improve district safety and security. Other measures include new communication tools to reach the college police, signs inside classrooms for easier location reporting, and a broad slate of other changes to ensure a welcoming and safe atmosphere at the college. The college is implementing the safety plan at current campuses and will build these safety strategies into the new campuses in Wylie and Allen.