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Campus Partners

 

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CAMPUS PARTNERS TEAM

 

The Campus Partners Team, is a multi-disciplinary team which is focused on maintaining a safe community at WKU. The team manages cases with an mild to elevated risk of harm compared to the lower level cases managed by the HRL CARE Team.  The Campus Partners team meets regularly to detect “red flags” in student or group behavior over time. The team collaborates, collects information, identifies risks, and intervenes when appropriate to protect people from harming themselves or others.

Our Campus Partners Team members are dedicated university professionals from offices across campus, including, Dean of Student Office, Office of Student Conduct, Housing and Residence Life, Student Accessibility Resource Center, Student Ombuds, Counseling  Center, Associate Provost for Faculty & Academic Excellence, Advising and Career Development, International Students Office and the WKU Police Department. In addition to specialized training related to their roles, each team member brings unique perspectives, expertise and resources to our process.

Using the information available, cases are carefully reviewed. The team collaborates on a plan to respond to reports of a variety of  behaviors and student needs to support the student or students involved. The team implements interventions and monitors/reviews the cases, endeavoring to help to persist to graduation.

  • WHO WE ARE:  The Campus Partners Team (CPT) consists of University personnel with expertise in law enforcement/threat assessment/tactical applications, The Dean of Students Office, Student Conduct, Housing & Residence Life, Counseling Center, Student Accessibility Resource Center and Advising & Career Development Center. We will use a collaborative effort to assess disruptive behaviors and depending on the situation, team members with specific areas of specialization/responsibility may be called upon to lead the Team.

  • MISSION - The Campus Partners Team (CPT) is committed to student success and strives to maintain a campus environment that is conducive to learning both in and out of the classroom. Our Team aims to provide an educational opportunity for all members of its community. Our Team is designed to be proactive and help identify persons whose behaviors are disruptive and potentially endanger their own or others health and safety. We will address situations and take appropriate action when students displaying harmful behaviors that potentially impede their own or others ability to function within the community are identified.

  • PURPOSE - The team will also work to help create a campus culture of caring for students of concern and a crisis education program for the campus as a whole. The Vice President for Enrollment and Student Experience or his/her designee will keep senior officials advised of situations and specifically will communicate with the President and the Vice President for Public Relations on matters. Other individuals may also be consulted as needed. All faculty and staff are reminded to contact the University Police as a first step if the student of concern is in immediate danger of hurting themselves or others. Faculty and staff should contact Counseling Center at 270-745-3159 if they wish to consult with a Counseling Center staff member if the situation involves clinical urgency. The Team will meet as needed to review reports brought forward by faculty, staff, and students concerning disruptive, inappropriate, and/or harmful behavior.

  • APPROACH- The Campus Partners team works to advocate, support, and develop students as they navigate their time at WKU. We actively engage in conversations that promote compassionate, welcoming, and safe campus communities. In working with students, we are responsive to their needs and assist them in their academic and personal endeavors. In addition to these core principles of our purpose, the Campus Parners Team serves as an advocate for students facing challenges to their success. We work to empower students to know and understand
    their rights and responsibilities as members of our community.

  • GOAL - The goal of the CPT is to foster early identification of concerns about a student(s), early screening of problematic situations that adversely affect a student and/or the learning community, the development of preventative, early and effective interventions and action plans designed to support student development, and address problems before they evolve into crises. Our approach is to help clarify risk and protective factors related to the mental health, potential stability and contextual issues affecting a student, as well as their implications for community living, academic achievement, and general student development.

    The Team meets weekly and as needed for specific situations.

  • Meeting Schedule- According to the National Behavioral Intervention Team Association, most teams meet once a week or twice a month and have a set meeting time (e.g., Tuesdays at 1 p.m.). These meetings are generally 60–90 minutes in length. 

    Emergency meetings may be scheduled as necessary.

The Campus Partners Team approach seeks to connect students to the proper department(s) that will provide the best resource(s). Reports are reviewed during normal business hours by people who are trained to assess and act. The Campus Partners Team conducts an initial assessment on every report. In many cases, the outcome of the initial assessment is simply to offer support and resources to either the individual who reports the concern, the person of concern, or both.

We will collaborate with the person making the report and with other campus and community resources, as needed and if appropriate. In some cases, a more in-depth analysis may occur before the Campus Partners Team can determine next steps of intervention. The reporting party will be kept informed, as appropriate, of the situation while mindful of the student's right to privacy and of all parties involved.

If there is a concern for safety, the Campus Partners Team can help those who report to contact the appropriate on- and off-campus support and resources. While maintaining privacy is the Campus Partners Team’s goal, please be aware that reports and other communication may be subject to review as outlined in federal and state laws.  We will consult our General Counsel for all requests.

If there is a potential threat, the Campus Partners Team provides guidance and recommendations to the appropriate individuals to mitigate or manage the threat. The Campus Partners Team retains all reported information to assist in identifying potential behavioral patterns.

Records are securely kept and managed for longitudinal tracking of student conduct over time to assess trends and patterns. 
 
The campus does not tolerate retaliation.
 
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Campus Partners Team Response

How the Process Works

When a community member files a report, the leadership team will receive a notification. A case managers then review the report and gathers further information. A case manager may modify or update the case file as needed to record the most accurate depiction of the student's concerns. After a review of the report, the case manager assigned will determine appropriate outreach and next steps.

Reported behavior may have several ways we may respond based on the level of threat and protocols.

Risk Assessment

The Campus Partners Team uses a risk rubric that measures generalized risk, mental and behavioral health, and aggression to determine the need for intervention. Generalized risk includes the university community, facilities, reputation, academics, finances, etc. Mental and behavioral health-related risks include harm to self. 

Actions may include but are not limited to:

  • Establishing baseline behavior assessment
  • Reaching out to the student to express concern and ask about their well-being
  • Meeting with the student(s) involved to discuss:
    Student needs
    Campus and community services/resources
    University behavior expectations/ Student Code of Conduct
  • Referring the student to campus programs and services (counseling, student financial assistance, student accessibility resources, academic advising etc.)
  • Referring the student to community resources
  • Referring the student to the Office of Student Conduct 
  • Facilitating a meeting of concerned parties
  • Recommending counseling or other outside interventions
  • University-initiated leave of absence
  • Notifying outside partners in high priority cases, when the student is considered an imminent threat to self or others

Follow-up plan of actions may include but are not limited to:

  • Establishing return criteria with the Dean of Students
  • Coordinating record of attendance with support services
  • Establishing behavioral expectations
  • Verifying continuity of care and resources
  • Disseminates relevant information to Campus Police

Team scope of work

Our Campus Partners Team:

  • Receives reports of disruptive, problematic, or concerning and/or disruptive behavior concerning students from faculty/staff and WKU community members. (Reports may come from professors, administrative staff, community members, friends, colleagues, law enforcement etc.)
  • Conducts an inquiry/investigation of the report
  • Performs an assessment of the behavior
  • Determines the best mechanisms for support, ressources, intervention strategies, send notifications and establish a plan of action for response
  • Coordinates follow-up with student 

Individual scope of work

Each Campus Partners Team member understands their scope of work within the context of team's responsibilities. Each member's scope of work mirrors the normal job function.

The Campus Partner Team makes recommendations, but do not dictate the actions.

 

 

Community Effort:

The entire campus community, including faculty, Department Heads, Housing staff, and students themselves, are encouraged to report students behavior of concern to Campus Partners Team by calling the Dean of Students (270-745-5309) or The Office of Student Conduct at 270-745-5429.   Faculty, Housing staff, and students themselves are identified as the front line of interface with students who exhibit behavior that is distressing, disturbing, disruptive, or threatening harm to themselves or others. As part of a community safety and student support efforts, the CPT invites all faculty, staff, and students to participate in early reporting of their concerns to the team, whose members can assess the student’s needs and provide needed resources to help the student succeed.

The University encourages everyone in its community  to be alert to the possibility of threats and acts of violence on the part of employees, former employees, students, former students, customers and strangers. The University will handle any report of violence in a confidential manner, to the extent permitted by law and policy, and will release information related to such reports only on a need-to-know basis. If you provide contact information, we can contact you to let you know we are addressing your concern. You are encouraged to identify yourself because you can assist the team if clarification or additional information is needed. Anonymous entries will be evaluated based on the information provided. However, providing incomplete information may not allow the individual to receive the help or resources needed. 

The University prohibits individuals from making deliberately false or misleading reports of violence or threats of violence under this policy. Individuals who make such reports will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including suspension or termination of employment.

 

FERPA

FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy, Department of Education, Federal Register, 73(237), 34 CFR Part 99, January 8, 2009)

FERPA covers written records; however, observations made by college administrators, faculty, staff and students are not covered by FERPA. In other words, you would not violate FERPA by advising Campus Partners of what you saw or heard when directly interacting personally with the student, observing a student's interaction with others, or otherwise observing a student's behavior or demeanor. 

Campus Partner records and proceedings are protected and private. Information is only shared on a "need to know" basis. This "need to know" basis complies with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

 

 

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 Last Modified 9/23/24