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Home  > Student Life  > Safety and Security Measures

Safety and Security Measures

A.   Emergency Planning, Preparedness, Response and Recovery

During university emergencies, the CUA Department of Public Safety provides for the safety of students, staff, faculty and visitors, and the security of property.  Emergency Support Functions, ESFs, have been identified to accomplish the mission of handling emergencies in a manner consistent with the District Response Plan. The department manages and coordinates law enforcement activities and provides personnel, equipment and security in support of the university ESFs. Each ESF is managed by a professional-level staff member. Mitigation, preparedness, and training are ongoing activities.

B.   Timely Warning Procedures:

The John Paul II Institute cooperates with the efforts of The Catholic University of America in maintaining its emergency management plan, designed to address the issues of planning, preparation, response, and recovery for all emergencies.  If it is clear that CUA's Department of Public Safety has not been informed of a crime or emergency, the Institute staff, under the direction of the Associate Dean for Programs and Administration, will inform CUA, by calling the DPS at (202) 913-5111. 

If the safety and security of the Institute community requires such action in the event of a crime or safety matter, Institute students, faculty, and staff are informed via email immediately. Also, if a dire emergency situation develops, Institute staff and faculty in the building will be informed of the situation not only by email, but by phone (phone tree system). In such a case, also, the Institute staff,  if able to do so without endangering themselves, will follow set emergency procedures to tell others in person throughout the building, of the emergency and what action is required.  These actions in their most basic form follow two principles: Either sheltering in place, or evacuation of the building. 

Crime alerts that come from CUA are shared with the Institute through the email warning/alert procedures that CUA has established and in which the Institute participates.  Institute staff also post on McGivney Hall bulletin boards the printed notices of recent Crime Alerts so that anyone who is not in email contact has access to that information.  Students and Institute employees also have the option to receive text alerts pertaining to D.C. crime alerts on their mobile devices by signing up through CUA to the "Alert DC" system.  (For more information, see instructions at https://textalert.ema.dc.gov/index.php?CCheck=1 ).

For more information, see the CUA Public Safety Web site: "How We Manage Emergencies" at http://pubIicsafety.cua.edu/ emergency/index.cfrn."  This site is linked at www.johnpaulii.edu under Student Life/Safety.

C.   Access and Building Security - McGivney Hall

Through CUA's automatic door-security system, the three exit doors (egress at Level 1 North, Level 1 South, and Ground Floor South ramp) to McGivney Hall open at 7:30 a.m. and close at 10 p.m.  The doors to McGivney Level 2 and Level 3 where the offices of the Institute are housed are opened also automatically from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m Monday-Friday—the hours when Institute staff are typically present. Doors to the reading room and student lounge are opened and closed by Institute staff from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. except when evening Institute classes and evening events in McGivney make it reasonable to have those rooms open. 

If problems occur during business hours, Institute employees can help visitors and students to contact CUA's Department of Public Safety (319-5111) if such assistance is needed.  Outside normal business hours, in the event of an emergency, within McGivney Hall, the elevator in has an emergency call button that links directly to CUA's Security Office.  Outside McGivney Hall, there is also an emergency telephone near the sidewalk leading between the Shrine and the Pryzbyla Plaza (north side of McGivney Hall).  This location is also the McGivney Hall assembly area in the event of an evacuation emergency.

The Department of Public Safety requires that all maintenance, custodial services and power plant staff wear identification badges on their outer garments.  All contractors hired by CUA are issued and required to wear identification badges and they are to be escorted by CUA staff.  This makes it helpful to Institute students and employees to identify work personnel within the confines of McGivney Hall and surroundings.