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Brandeis University's Community Newspaper — Waltham, Mass.

No fire sprinklers in some dorms

Published: September 17, 2010
Section: Front Page


On Patrol: A Brandeis police car patrolls campus by the Spingold Theatre.
PHOTO BY Max Shay/The Hoot

Schwartz Castle and four buildings in the Charles River Residence Quad do not have partial or full sprinkler systems installed, according to The Department of Public Safety’s annual report issued Thursday in compliance with federal laws.

As part of a yearly report on crime and public safety, the Annual Fire Safety Report must be published, in addition to a fire log and a process for searching for missing persons under new regulations from the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA).

The annual report also includes crime statistics from the past three calendar years and is required by the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, according to a statement from the Department of Public Safety.

“Brandeis University is committed to assisting all members of the Brandeis community in learning about measures enacted for campus safety and security, and in assisting community members in providing for their own safety and security,” the report said.

The only fire listed in the report that caused significant damage was a fire from a lamp last October inside Reitman Hall in North Residence Quad. The fire left property damages of $2,500. The seven other fires in the report from the last three years each caused less than $30 in property damage.

The report also included a crime log from the past three years. There was one “forcible sexual assault,” in 2009, but no cases of murder or manslaughter.

“The vast majority of our students, faculty, staff and visitors do not experience crime at Brandeis University. However, despite our best efforts, crimes sometimes occur,” the report said.

Under missing persons procedures outlined in the report, University Police must notify the Dean of Student Life’s office when a student is confirmed as missing by the police supervisor.

For students living on campus, the Dean’s office must then contact the Community Development Coordinator on duty who would then contact neighbors and friends who live near the missing student.

After 24 hours, the student’s emergency contact, if submitted to the registrar would then be contacted.

If the student, older than 18, does not have an emergency contact, the Dean’s office will be responsible for notifications from that point on. For missing students younger than 18, parents or legal guardians must be contacted. For international students or students living off- campus, the procedures differ, according to the report.

In its outline of the Brandeis Emergency Notification System (BENS), the report explains that the university will use e-mails, phone calls and text messages to notify students in the event of an emergency. A siren warning system is also in place.

The university will test the BENS system and organize evacuation drills at least once per year as it did in April last semester.

The four evacuation sites on campus are the Coffman Grad Commons Room in the Charles River Apartments, main gym inside the Gosman Athletics Center the main stage in Spingold Theatre and Levin Ballroom inside the Usdan Student Center.