An Incident Command System (ICS) is a management system designed to enable effective and efficient responses to emergencies of any scale, large or small, by integrating five functional areas for management of all major incidents:

• Command
• Operations
• Planning
• Logistics
• Finance/Administration

The National Precedent

The original Incident Command System was established in the mid-1970s by the US Forest Service and a number of California agencies. It was designed to improve and help coordinate responses to catastrophic wildfires in California. By 1981, ICS was used widely in Southern California in response to fire and non-fire incidents, and its success led to its application in a broad variety of emergency situations.

In March 2004, ICS was included as a mandate in the National Incident Management System, which is managed by the Department of Homeland Security. It applies to Federal, State, and Local Governments, and to all first-response agencies such as police and fire departments.

Suffolk's Response

While colleges and universities are not first response organizations, Suffolk University recognizes its role in the community, and the importance of protecting its students, faculty, and staff in the event of an emergency. Planning for the Suffolk Incident Command System began in 2005.

Currently, many members of the Suffolk community have been certified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in Incident Command.

The oversight and management of emergency preparedness at Suffolk University is divided into two levels: an Executive Policy Group, and an Incident Support Team.

Executive Policy Group - This group is made up of the President, Chief of Staff, Senior Vice Presidents, the Vice President of Marketing & Communications, and Legal Counsel. This group meets on a quarterly basis and is responsible for making policy-level decisions. The primary responsibilities include:

• During the preparedness phase, setting policy, providing overall strategies for the University, establishing priorities, and ensuring adequate staff and resources are available to support the execution of the priorities.
• During an event or emergency, collaborating with the Emergency Manager on the current status of an event/emergency, declaring changes in University operations, fielding inquiries from constituencies and stakeholders such as trustees and politicians, authorizing large expenditures, authorizing press releases and other releases of information, approving the waiver of standard policies to facilitate responses and recovery, and making other significant decisions to mitigate the effects of the emergency.

Incident Support Team – This group is made up of the Chief of Staff as the liaison to the Executive Policy Group, Public Affairs, Provost’s Office, Deans of Students, Facilities, Human Resources, ITS, OEHS, the Risk Manager, SUPD, Media Services, Government Relations and Community Affairs, and the Business Office. This is the tactical level group; it meets monthly and provides guidance and logistical support for implementing the policies and priorities as established by the Executive Policy Group.  The primary responsibilities include:

• During the preparedness phase, discussing plans, protocols and updates to the EAP, debriefing of prior incidents, and identifying and selecting resources, including personnel, to accomplish tasks.
• During an event/emergency, staffing the Emergency Operations Center, providing tactical guidance and management during response and recovery operations, identifying and obtaining resources necessary to mitigate and recover from an incident, as well as advising on strategic policy and direction for the recovery and resumption of normal operations.

Suffolk University also has a separate College of Arts and Sciences Safety Committee (CAS) comprised of representatives from Environmental, Health & Safety, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, NESAD, Communication/Journalism, and Electrical Engineering that meets quarterly.