Chancellor Block reminds campus community of crisis services available to all at UCLA
By UCLA Newsroom
July 23, 2012
In the aftermath of the mass shootings in Aurora, Chancellor Gene Block reminds the UCLA community that crisis intervention services are available to students, faculty and staff.
Last week’s tragedy in Colorado strikes close to home for all of us in higher education. As you likely are aware, the suspect has been identified as a young man who recently dropped out of a University of Colorado Denver graduate program in neuroscience and who earned a bachelor's degree at UC Riverside.
We all realize predicting violence can be exceptionally difficult, and in this case it is unclear whether the suspect’s behavior conveyed warning signs before the shooting. I want to remind the campus community that UCLA has a coordinated network of resources available to assist students potentially at-risk and faculty and staff who may notice irrational or unsafe behavior.
• The Consultation and Response Team provides education to the campus community on resources available to assist students in crisis, consultation to members of the campus community who are concerned about the well-being of a student, and appropriate response to the needs of students who are in crisis or at-risk. Contact a case manager who coordinates the team’s work with units across campus: (310) 825-7291, (310) 825-0628, or CRTeam@ucla.edu. A guide for the campus, produced and distributed by the team, is available here as a pdf.
• Professional personnel at Counseling and Psychological Services are available for immediate assessment, intervention and treatment for students in crisis. The CAPS 24-hour access line – (310) 825-0768 – offers crisis counseling at any time, day or night. Staff, faculty and parents with concerns about a student can call for immediate consultation as well.
• Most important, in any emergency, call the UCLA Police Department by dialing 911 from an on-campus phone or (310) 825-1491 from a cell phone. UCPD also maintains an Anonymous Message/Tip Line at (310) 794-5824.
• The Staff and Faculty Counseling Center provides additional resources. Call (310) 794-0245.
These resources are comprehensive, caring and inclusive. They are intended to protect the health and safety of students, faculty, staff and visitors. If you see distressed or distressing individuals on campus, it is important to utilize our extensive resources and consult with others so that an appropriate intervention can be made and support provided as early as possible.
As we continue to mourn the loss of life in Colorado and hold the victims’ families close in our hearts, let us remember our mutual obligation to communicate and collaborate in the shared goal of campus safety.
Sincerely,
Gene D. Block, Chancellor