The Clarion recently spoke with Sinclair Community College Police Chief Charles Gift to get some advice about safety on campus during the winter season.
Gift said a major winter safety concern on campus is the threat of injury due to slipping and falling on icy steps or sidewalks.
“The staff from Standard Parking and the facilities staff do an excellent job of keeping the sidewalks and other walking areas clear of snow and ice,” Gift said. “However, there’s always a chance that it could re-freeze after it’s been cleared.”
The Sinclair Police Department recommends parking in lot A and using one of the three overhead walkways to get to campus.
“The only places you really can’t get to without going outside would be Building 19 (Criminal Justice) … and Fire Science,” Gift said.
He also stated that all the Sinclair Police officers are trained in first aid, so if you do slip and sustain an injury, you can call them at (937) 512-2700 and an officer will assist you and assess the severity of the injury.
If one or more of Sinclair’s campuses closes due to winter weather, Gift said students can get immediate notifications by visiting sinclair.edu/about/alerts/, or by texting SINCLAIR to 888777. The Sinclair Police Department recommends signing up for these text alerts because it is the quickest way to get important updates regarding school closures or emergencies.
The text service is called Nixle Connect and is a nationwide network that serves police, firefighters, schools and government agencies.
“If there is a weather event, we send out any information we have through the Nixle system,” Gift said. “It’s also used for any emergency on campus. If you have Nixle, you’re going to get [closure information] before it’s on television, before the website. We highly encourage every faculty, student and staff member to sign up.”
Gift said students shouldn’t worry about non-essential messages coming from Nixle, there will be no advertising or “spam” sent through the system.
“I can assure you, nothing but emergencies are sent out by Sinclair through Nixle; it’s not used for anything else,” Gift said. “If you get [a text], it’s going to be something important.”
Gift said the president receives information from Sinclair Police and the Sinclair Weather Committee before making the decision to close the campus. The committee also coordinates with facilities and parking services to help them prepare accordingly for inclement weather.
“It’s an extensive process,” Gift said. “The committee monitors the weather and that information is provided to the president, who has the final say as to whether we’re going to close.”
News of a closure would then be relayed to faculty, staff and students via Nixle.
Gift said the weather can change for the worse very rapidly during winter, so the Sinclair Police constantly monitor the weather and road conditions, as well as the Ohio State Highway Patrol, local police and various sheriffs’ offices in order to keep the school updated.
Gift said there is one additional public safety concern many people don’t often think of during the winter season—an increase in theft, mostly by non-students.
He said students wear coats when the weather turns cold, but after arriving at school they often remove their coats and sweaters and use them to cover their laptops or other property while they run off to buy coffee or use the restroom.
“Unfortunately, when they come back, their property is taken,” Gift said. “If students could just be vigilant and not leave their property covered with only a coat—that doesn’t fool anybody.”