Emergency Response Information:
We are now in the heart of the hurricane season. The Levin College of Law follows University of Florida policies and procedures regarding school closings and other matters, and the latest information will be posted on the UF Home page at www.ufl.edu. Updated information on school closings and related matters will also be available on local radio and TV stations and by calling UF at 352-392-3261 (which is activated during emergencies only). We will also link to this information from the law school home page at www.law.ufl.edu.

Hurricanes give us time to prepare a response, but some situations do not:

• In the event of a fire or other emergency at the law school, please proceed quickly but carefully to the nearest exit, and then continue on to a distance of at least 50 feet away from the exterior of the school. Do NOT go to the law school courtyard.
• If a severe storm or tornado occurs while you are on the law school campus, please go to or remain in an inside, windowless classroom or other facility. We are in the process of posting specific instructions in each classroom and in other spaces on the law school campus. Examples include the Rare Book Room, internal library meeting rooms, and Bailey Courtroom.

Over the summer, we took steps to update our Emergency Preparedness Plan. We outlined a response plan in the event of a tornado warning, and held a drill to ensure that faculty and staff knew where to report in the event of a real warning. In addition, we are working toward making signage available throughout our buildings that contain emergency instructions. We are also in the process of equipping our facilities with the Informacast Emergency Broadcast system. This system uses our current telecommunications equipment as well as some additional speaker units to broadcast emergency messages as necessary throughout our buildings. The system has been deployed throughout offices and classrooms, and we will soon be installing speakers in the Bruton-Geer cafeteria area, the courtyard, and the Legal Information Center.

H1N1 (Swine Flu):
With regard to the H1N1 flu, I encourage you to visit the UF Environmental Health and Safety H1N1 Web site at www.ehs.ufl.edu/H1N1 for the most recent updates related to the University’s response to the outbreak. As I am sure you have heard repeatedly, the most important preventative step you can take against the virus is to practice good hygiene, such as washing your hands frequently and avoiding touching your eyes and mouth with your hands. Also, it is important if you have flu symptoms (see the foregoing link for more information) that you stay home until the symptoms have subsided (i.e., 24 hours without fever without taking fever-reducing medications). Please notify the Office of Student Affairs at 273-0620 if you experience flu symptoms and will need to miss classes. We are in the process of installing hand sanitizer dispensers at multiple locations around the law campus, which I encourage you to use. I am also working with the UF Student Health Care Center to bring the administration of both the seasonal flu vaccine as well as the H1N1 vaccine to the law campus. Please watch for announcements related to the availability of the vaccines as the semester progresses.

Security:
On a final note, the safety of our students is of utmost importance to our campus community. When leaving the law campus area after hours, please be sure to make use resources such as SNAP, or Student Nighttime Auxiliary Patrol, made available to you by the University Police Department. You may request a walking escort or a ride with SNAP via telephone at 392-SNAP (392-7627). For more information about SNAP call the UPD Community Services Division at 392-1111.

The beginning of each academic year holds great anticipation and excitement for all of us. I wish you a successful, healthy, and safe 2009-2010.