SECTION 1: INTRODUCTORY MATERIALS

A. PROMULGATION STATEMENT

As articulated in the university’s Emergency Management Policy (http://www2.montana.edu/policy/emergency/) Montana State University (MSU) is committed to protecting the lives, safety, and welfare of its campus and community members; protecting and preserving its intellectual property, physical assets and facilities; establishing requirements for tasked organizations to develop plans and execute annual training exercises; and ensuring the continuity of operations of essential services.

This Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) provides a framework in which MSU, along with its officials, units, departments, offices, and campus community, can work to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from the effects of emergencies and disasters. Recognizing the impracticality of developing and maintaining individual plans for every possible emergency, this EOP provides general guidelines for responding to emergency events by activating decision processes, gathering decision-makers, and marshaling resources to address University emergencies. This EOP is intended to be a dynamic document that establishes a framework to guide effective response to emergencies, minimizes the impacts of emergencies, maximizes the effectiveness of university resources and that is scalable, flexible, and adaptable enough to apply to a broad range of emergencies.

This EOP was prepared under the guidance of the MSU Emergency Management Committee (EMC) and identifies institutional resources and responsibilities that may be called upon to provide support in the case of an emergency. The plan will be reviewed periodically by the EMC and revised or updated as deemed appropriate. The Emergency Management Coordinator, working under the direction of the AVP for University Services and the general guidance of the Emergency Management Committee is authorized and responsible for implementing and updating this plan. In the absence of the Emergency Management Coordinator, the AVP for University Services is authorized to make necessary changes to the plan as needed.

B. APPROVAL AND IMPLEMENTATION

Executive authority for Emergency Management at MSU resides with the President or the president’s appointed delegate. This EOP was prepared by MSU to develop, implement, and maintain a viable all-hazards response capability and to establish a comprehensive approach to providing consistent, effective, and efficient coordination across a broad spectrum of emergency response activities.


All agencies, colleges, and departments on the Bozeman campus under MSU jurisdiction shall abide by and cooperate fully with the provisions described and referenced herein when called upon to execute the plan. Any or all parts of the plan may be activated based on the specific emergency as decided by university leadership.

This plan may be activated by those with the assigned authority within this plan as necessary to respond to any emergency or as required in the presence of a local, regional or national event.

This EOP and its supporting contents and referenced materials are hereby approved and supersede all previous plans and supporting materials. This EOP shall be effective immediately upon execution of all signatures below.