On Tues., Sept. 26, starting at 4 p.m. in Denault Auditorium Concordia Campus Safety and Irvine Police will host violent intruder response training. This event both reassures students that they are in good hands with Campus Safety and gives them the tools to protect themselves and others in the rare event of a violent intrusion.

Raul Morales, Director of Campus Safety, spoke to the importance of this kind of training. “It’svery important that we develop a thought process of some type of situational awareness so we’re aware that at any given time something can happen.” Morales added, “We need as many people as possible to have that situational awareness. They may not only save themselves, but also save others.”

Violent intruder response training is also led by Irvine police officer Rick Gramer, who is certified by the Department of Homeland Security as a Physical Security Professional.

“Gramer is in charge of the school threat assessment unit,” said Morales. “His sole assignment is to work with schools in mitigating threats, preventing situations and training police officers, faculty, staff and students all over the City of Irvine to be aware of situations.”

Gramer’s two-hour response training session is important because it shows you “what tools you have,” said Steven Rodriguez, Associate Director of Campus Safety. “It’s good to go over this,
even if it’s hearing it again and again.”

The topic of an armed and violent intruder on a college campus is inherently a dour subject that may be uncomfortable to discuss. Rodriguez reassures would-be attendees by saying, “Officer Gramer presents the topic really, really well. He’s not all about it being super heavy. It’s a heavy topic, but he has a good way of balancing it out.”

“People walk away feeling a lot more empowered,” said Morales, adding, “They feel a lot more control over their environment. They’ll be able to help make themselves safe in all environments.”

“It’s always good to prepare for a worst-case scenario and hope it never happens,” Rodriguez said, “But at the same time, a lot of folks who’ve been through this training, the takeaway is ‘I’m glad I went!’”

Concordia’s Campus Safety department has even received requests to make violent intruder response training mandatory, due to the positive impact and importance of the event in the past.

Even if students have already attended a similar training session, Rodriguez encourages people to come and participate in the exercise. “It’s always good to review. It’s always good to practice,” said Rodriguez.

The training consists of an hour presentation from Gramer and other police officers, followed by a training exercise and debrief. All faculty, staff and students are encouraged to attend. If you have any questions, please email the campus safety department at campussafety@cui. edu.

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