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Knowing that your student is in a safe community is piece of mind for parents. The University of Oklahoma has implemented all precautions to ensure that your student resides and thrives in as safe an environment as we can provide.
The OU Student Code and Sooner Safety Report are documents that explain what measures have been instituted in regard to residence life and campus safety; key/card access to buildings after hours, emergency telephones and SafeWalk.
Please click here to read these informative pieces.
Safety Procedures for Severe Weather
Suitable protective areas have been identified within each university housing center. To protect persons using these spaces against airborne debris, particularly glass and wood splinters, all doors opening into the protective spaces should be closed while in use for a severe weather protective area. OU Housing staff provides residents with annual severe weather safety training/information and OU housing centers maintain/monitor NOAA S.A.M.E. weather radios. Residents with questions regarding severe weather emergency procedures or designated protective areas in their housing center should contact OU Housing and Food Services, 325-2511.
Residence Halls
In the event of National Weather Service "Severe Weather Warnings" or "Tornado Watches" for Cleveland County, OU Housing staff will post a warning/watch-"specific" notification sign on the first floor of each residence hall building, and in elevator cars, alerting residents to "stay tuned" to weather conditions on TV/radio. Resident Life staff will also monitor the NOAA "S.A.M.E." weather radio in each Duty Office. Also, through the emergency command systems, Walker, Couch and Adams centers have voice-notification announcements for severe weather warnings and watches.
In the event of a NWS "Tornado Warning" for our area, students living in University residence halls are advised to follow the emergency response procedures (permanently posted on either the inside of individual "resident room" doors, in hallways or elevator landings), maintain personal safety and encourage movement of other residents to safe and secure areas.
University Apartments
Residents of University apartments are encouraged to follow these National Weather Service suggestions for occupants of houses and apartments without basements: "Avoid windows. Go to the lowest floor, small center room (like a bathroom or closet), under a stairwell, or in an interior hallway with no windows. Crouch as low as possible to the floor, facing down; and cover your head with your hands. A bathtub may offer a shell of partial protection. Even in an interior room, you should cover yourself with some sort of thick padding (mattress, blankets, etc.), to protect against falling debris in case the roof and ceiling fail."
Plan ahead! Know where you can seek refuge in a matter of seconds, and practice an apartment "tornado drill" with your roommates at least once a year. Have a pre-determined place to meet after a disaster.
Flying debris is the greatest danger in tornadoes - so store protective padding/coverings (mattress, blankets, sleeping bags, etc.) in or next to your refuge space, ready to use on a few seconds' notice. If you've created a "severe weather emergency kit" (described later on this web page), your "planned" refuge area would be a good place to store your kit!
When a Tornado Watch is issued, think about your "tornado drill" and check to make sure all your safety supplies are handy. Turn on local TV, radio or NOAA Weather Radio and stay alert for Warnings.
Avoid windows! -Forget about the old notion of opening windows to equalize pressure; a tornado will blow open the windows for you! However, do close all doors between your refuge area and adjacent areas with windows - to help limit flying debris.
Sooner Suites
Safe Spots:
Sooner Suites Cottages — the bathroom or center hallway in each suite
Safety Services
H&F Safety and Security Committee
The Safety and Security Committee was established by the director of Housing and Food Services, Bill Henwood. The Committee, comprised of staff and students, encourages the university community to point out housing or food services issues, in order to address problems timely and appropriately. An interactive web request form has been established to facilitate the reporting of these issues or concerns. We urge everyone to report issues to our committee by using this link for our Safety & Security Request Form. As a member of our community, the Safety and Security Committee asks that everyone take an active part in making the University of Oklahoma safe and secure.
SafeWalk
What if I don't want to walk around campus alone at night? OU has SafeWalk. Students, faculty, staff, and visitors on the University of Oklahoma, Norman Campus can utilize the free services of the OU SafeWalk escort service if they do not wish to walk alone. Persons who do not wish to walk alone can call 325-WALK (325-9255) and request an escort from 8 p.m. till 2 a.m., 7-days a week.
Employee or volunteer escorts will arrive within ten-fifteen minutes at any OU campus location and escort persons on foot to their campus destination. Each employee or volunteer carries and displays an identification card with their likeness, name, and SafeWalk name and year of service to verify their identity.
The SafeWalk coverage area spans north-to-south from Boyd Street to Lloyd Noble Center and west-to-east from Elm to Jenkins streets. In addition to campus locations, SafeWalk will provide service to the north and south Greek areas immediately adjacent to campus. This service is free of charge to anyone who requests it.
SafeWalk staff carry flashlights all the time and umbrellas in wet weather. SafeWalk can be contacted by phone at 325-WALK (325-9255; 5-9255 from a campus phone) and you can call free from any campus courtesy phone, or by using the blue emergency phones. When using a blue phone, simply ask the OUPD dispatcher to connect you with SafeWalk.
We also have phones all over campus in case of emergency. OU has installed special telephones at various outdoor locations in academic and housing areas on campus that are connected directly to the OU police - no money - no dialing. These phones can be located by a blue light and a blue sign with the word:"EMERGENCY". Simply open the blue cabinet and lift the handset to talk to the police dispatcher.
I am worried about my bike. Register your bike at the OU or Norman Police stations. This provides important information to help recover your bike if it is stolen, and helps the police get it back to you if it is recovered. Bike registration is FREE at OU and Norman and only takes a few minutes.
All Housing and Food Services residence halls (Couch, Walker, Adams and Cate Centers) have card access systems in place. Your OU student ID will allow you to access your assigned floor and your assigned residence hall as well as the first floor lobbies in other centers for access to services such as computer labs and food services. Any tampering with or propping of the security doors is strictly prohibited. In the case of a lost ID you can get a temporary ID to access your floor from your center office. To replace your ID card you must visit the OneCard office in the Oklahoma Memorial Union. For more information on the One Card please visit the One Card Web site.
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