Emergencies
- In case of emergency while teaching, call campus police at 348-5454. They can reach campus locations faster than 911.
- You can also call 911 in addition to campus police.
- Have someone (a student or another teacher) immediately notify English office personnel that you called in an emergency.
- Having students’ CWIDs handy in case of emergency will help campus police.
Ready.ua.edu has information on various potential threats, shelter locations, and emergency procedures.
- Suspend class and begin evacuation immediately when siren sounds.
- Leave classroom lights ON and take your grade book with you.
- Use stairs instead of the elevator and walk to nearest exit.
- Escort your class to an area a safe distance from the building and call roll.
- Have students remain with you until the all-clear is given.
- Determine your building’s Best Available Refuge Areas (BARA) for severe weather on building evacuation maps. The maps are mounted on the interior walls of each building near ingress/egress locations.
- Suspend class and begin evacuation immediately when siren sounds.
- Use stairs instead of elevators.
- At designated safe place, students should sit on floor and be prepared to take cover.
- DO NOT dismiss students until all-clear is given, even if it is past regular class-end time.
- Students MAY NOT leave the building while a tornado alarm is still sounding.
- You may return to your classroom and continue with class when the all-clear is given.
Helping Students
The University of Alabama’s Counseling Center is a resource for students needing help with mental health or stress management issues.
Visit the Counseling Center website and the MentalHealthEdu website for information on how to identify and help students in distress.
Be sure to follow the appropriate UA channels if you feel that a student needs help. Don’t try to address these issues on your own.
FERPA protects the confidentiality of student education records, and it is important for you to understand the issues involved with FERPA (also known as the Buckley Amendment). The Office of Academic Records / University Registrar has developed a comprehensive FERPA website (https://registrar.ua.edu/academics-policies/ferpa/) to help you determine when and when not to share student information.
Incoming first-year students are given the opportunity to sign a confidentiality waiver allowing the University to share their academic information (grades, class progress, etc.) with parents or guardians.If parents contact you requesting information about their child’s progress in your class, you will need to determine if the student signed a confidentiality waiver before you can speak to his or her parents.
The safest thing to do if a parent calls to ask about student grades is to explain to them that because of FERPA you are prohibited from talking with them but that you will be happy to speak with the student about his or her grades. If the parent wants a conference, the student should be present and you should get permission to waive FERPA before sharing student records at the conference. Please, also, feel free to contact the Director or Associate Director of FWP for advice on how to handle specific parental requests for information.
To report instances of hazing or suspected hazing call 348-HALT or see hazing.ua.edu for more info.
The Office of Disability Services (ODS) serves as the central contact point for students with disabilities. ODS works individually with students to determine appropriate and reasonable academic accommodations, and to ensure that students’ academic performance is evaluated apart from the limiting effects of disability. Please see the ODS Faculty/Staff page (http://ods.ua.edu/faculty/) or call 348-4285 (voice) or 348-3081 (TTY) for details on policies, note-taker procedures, test scheduling, and procedures for temporary disability (injuries).
In the first weeks of class, remind students that they must register with ODS to receive accommodations and that once registered, they should bring you documentation that explains what accommodations are needed. Accommodations are not retroactive.
Safe Zone “[provides] a visible network of allies for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and asexual (LGBTQA+) individuals.” For more information and contact info please visit the Safe Zone website (http://safezone.ua.edu/).