Hampshire College

April 20, 2007

Dear Hampshire Parents:

On April 16 a tragedy of unthinkable proportions happened on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Hampshire's students, faculty and staff joined me in extending our deepest condolences to all members of the Virginia Tech community in a communication to President Charles Steger. As at other institutions across the nation, our flag flies at half-staff in somber respect for all those whose lives were so shockingly cut short on Monday of this week.

It will be a long time before the sounds and images of Virginia Tech’s dark day recede. I expect that even as the terrible events unfolded in Virginia, your thoughts turned inevitably to the safety of your son or daughter here at Hampshire. I write now to let you know that while we recognize that this crisis was as unusual as it was horrific, we take very seriously our obligation to provide as safe an environment as possible on our campus. Members of my administration and I undertake periodic review of the college's protocols for emergency response. What happened at Virginia Tech is a sober reminder that the unimaginable and unpredictable can take place even as we prepare and even as we pray that it will not. In its aftermath, we will make yet another review of our policies and procedures a first priority.

Our crisis management plan provides a guide for a coordinated response to major emergencies and creates a framework for an effective and efficient response. Hampshire’s Public Safety Officers are certified Police Officers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; they work regularly with other first responders to coordinate responses to various disaster scenarios. The college also has back-up support from the Amherst Police and Fire Departments, the State Police, and the Public Safety Departments of its sister institutions in Five College, Inc. While no safeguards, however prudent, can ever guarantee total safety, they do represent our best, coordinated efforts to keep members of our community from harm.

In addition, our mental health staff, expanded as of last fall, is available to our students, and we encourage students in need of counseling to take advantage of this important resource. Students can also reach out to the student Counselor Advocates, Spiritual Life staff, the professional Residence Life staff, as well as other members of the Student Services staff. We make every effort to create an environment in which students will use these services for as long as necessary.

Hampshire College is not without crime. No campus is. We try to weave simple awareness of our surroundings into the fabric of our community by urging everyone to report suspicious persons or behavior, to lock doors in order to discourage opportunistic thefts, and, most importantly of all, to watch out for one another. We strive to keep our college a free and open space, one in which our students, faculty and staff go about their daily business in confidence and without fear. The tragedy at Virginia Tech reminds us that this most basic goal is one that we must hold dear—and together must work hard to protect and preserve.

Sincerely,



Ralph J. Hexter
President