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Jacksonville State University
All Hazards - Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
Instructions: To be better prepared, all JSU departments and units may use this form to complete a
Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) - to describe how your department will operate during an
emergency and recover afterwards to be fully operational. This is your Plan; feel free to augment this
template to meet your needs. For guidance and more information, contact Dr. David Steffy,
Environmental Health & Safety Committee at 782-5966 or dsteffy@jsu.edu.
Department/Unit
Developer Date Plan Updated
Plan Development
Name Phone Number Alt Phone Number
Head of Operations
Email address
A: Background Information for Emergency Planning
No one can predict when an emergency might happen or how severe it will be. It is prudent to plan for
one, especially since these plans can be applied to any major emergency that could threaten the health
and safety of the campus community or disrupt University programs and essential operations. This plan
should address any kind of emergency that is severe enough to impact the JSU community including an
infectious disease epidemic, severe weather events, fires or explosions, hazardous materials releases,
extended utility outages, floods, terrorism or mass casualty events.
In the event of an emergency, JSU will have four objectives:
Protect life and health
Safeguard our critical infrastructure (support, facilities and operations)
Continue functions essential to university operations
Resume normal teaching, research and service operations as soon as possible
B: Your Department’s Objectives
Considering your department’s unique mission, describe your teaching, research and service objectives:
C: More Information Regarding Your Department
Please note below information for your department’s contact.
All Hazard Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
Jacksonville State University
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Name Phone Number email
COOP Contact
Email address
Dept. locations
Please indicate below the principle nature of your department’s operations (check all that apply):
Instruction Student life support
Laboratory research Research support
Other research Facilities support
Administration Other (describe): ________________________________
D: Emergency Communication Systems
All JSU employees are responsible for keeping informed of emergencies by monitoring news media
reports, JSU’s web home page, by calling the JSU Police Department (256-782-5050), email and phone
alert messages. To rapidly communicate with your employees in an emergency, we encourage all
departments to prepare and maintain a call tree.
Note below the system(s) you will use to contact your employees in an emergency. Departments should
identify multiple communication systems that can be used for backup, after hours, when not on campus,
or for other contingencies.
Phone Email Text messaging
Call tree Departmental web site Pager
Instant messaging Other (describe): ____________________
E: Emergency Access to Information and Systems
If access to your department’s information and systems is essential in an emergency, describe your
emergency access plan below. This may include remote access (or authorization to allow remote
access), contacting IT support, Blackboard, off-site data backup, backup files on flash drives, hard
copies, Blackberry/Treo or use of alternate email systems (e.g., Yahoo). Identify what critical data and
records are backed up, whether the back up is stored on-site or off-site. Simulate a failure scenario that
tests the ability to recover “lost” critical data. Describe how your department will respond to the
destruction of critical data. List essential functions that will need to have remote access to systems and
individual’s authorized to perform temporary but critical “work from home”.
All Hazard Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
Jacksonville State University
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F: Your Department’s Essential Functions
Below list your department’s functions that are essential to operational continuity and/or recovery.
Identify the position title which is responsible for each essential function.
Identify primary personnel and alternate personnel and make sure that alternates are sufficiently cross-
trained to assume responsibilities.
Essential Function:
Essential Position Title:
Primary Alternate Second Alternate
People Responsible
Phone Numbers
Essential Function:
Essential Position Title:
Primary Alternate Second Alternate
People Responsible
Phone Numbers
Essential Function:
Essential Position Title:
Primary Alternate Second Alternate
People Responsible
Phone Numbers
Essential Function:
Essential Position Title:
Primary Alternate Second Alternate
People Responsible
Phone Numbers
Essential Function:
Essential Position Title:
Primary Alternate Second Alternate
People Responsible
Phone Numbers
Sections F and G contain the list of your department’s key personnel and leaders - those responsible for
the above essential functions. The Head of Operations and each primary person listed in an essential
position are your department’s primary Essential Personnel. In an emergency, essential personnel are
expected to report to work unless directed by supervisor or public safety authorities not to report for
health and safety reasons.
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G: Your Department’s Leadership Succession
List the people who can make operational decisions if the head of your department or unit is absent.
Name Phone Number Alt Phone Number
Head of Operations
First Successor
Second Successor
Third Successor
H: Key Internal (Within JSU) Dependencies
All JSU departments rely on IT, Payroll, Purchasing, Business & Finance, Fire and Police, Human
Resources and Office of Facilities & Services. List below the other products and services upon which
your department depends and the internal JSU departments or units that provide them.
Dependency (product or service) :
Provider (JSU department):
Dependency (product or service) :
Provider (JSU department):
Dependency (product or service) :
Provider (JSU department):
Dependency (product or service) :
Provider (JSU department):
Dependency (product or service) :
Provider (JSU department):
I: Key External Dependencies
List below the products, services, suppliers and providers upon which your department depends. We
recommend that you encourage them to prepare continuity of operations plan.
Dependency (product or service) :
Primary Alternate
Supplier/Provider
Phone Numbers
Dependency (product or service) :
Primary Alternate
Supplier/Provider
Phone Numbers
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Dependency (product or service) :
Primary Alternate
Supplier/Provider
Phone Numbers
Dependency (product or service) :
Primary Alternate
Supplier/Provider
Phone Numbers
J: Mitigation Strategies
Considering your objectives, dependencies and essential functions, describe below the steps you can
take now to minimize the impact of various types of crises on your operations. For example, you may
wish to stock up on your critical supplies and develop contingency work-at-home procedures.
This may be the most important step of your emergency planning process. Formulation of your
mitigation strategies may require reevaluation of your objectives and functions.
K: Exercising Your Plan & Informing Your Staff
Share your completed Plan with your staff. Hold exercises to test the Plan and maintain awareness.
Note below the type of exercises you will use and their scheduled dates.
Staff orientation meeting Emergency communication test
Exercise Dates
Call tree drill Off site information access test
Tabletop exercise Unscheduled work at home day
Staff Distribution Date
Interdepartmental exercise Emergency assembly drill
Other drill (describe): ___________________________________
L: Recovery
Describe your plan to fully resume operations as soon as possible after the crisis has passed. Identify
and address resumption/scheduling of normal activities and services, work backlog, resupply of
inventories, absenteeism, the use of earned time off, and emotional needs.
All Hazard Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
Jacksonville State University
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M: Special Considerations for Your Department
Describe here any additional or unique considerations that your department may face in an
emergency.
N: For Events Impacting the Region consider Home
Emergency Planning for Individuals and Families
Employees, students and their families should plan for any type of emergency that could impact them
in their home, apartment or residence hall. Don’t wait—an emergency can occur at any time. Past
experience has taught us that employees may not show up for work if they are concerned for the
safety and security of their families. We recommend that your employees receive the following
information, available on the HHS Pandemic website at http://www.pandemicflu.gov/health and the
Ready.gov web link.
Guide for Individuals and Families Emergency Contacts Form
Family Health Information Sheet
Planning Checklist for Individuals and Families
O: COOP Submission
Thank you for completing your department’s All Hazards Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP).
Please submit this Plan to your Dean or Vice President for approval and identification of essential
positions within your department/unit.
Dean/VP name:
Title:
Dean/VP signature: Date submitted:
Send an electronic copy of this COOP to dsteffy@jsu.edu
.