Milbrey Whitham Marina Martin Sloane Ward Patrick Rabitaille
Paul Reilly Virginia Tech Massacre Milbrey Whitham Sloane Ward
Patrick Rabitaille Marina Martin Paul Reilly
Background of Virginia Tech Founded in 1872 under the name
Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College in Blacksburg,
Virginia West of Roanoke, in the New River Valley Founded as
agricultural and mechanical land-grant college
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Background cont. Opened its doors on October 1, 1872 Very slow
process Name changed to Virginia Polytechnic Institute By 1892,
created a military academy, Corp of Cadets and athletics department
Military became mandatory as well as Corp of Cadets
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In 1921, women accepted into VPI 1922, Bachelor Degree program
top 100 1960 Enrollment topped 10,000 students and African-American
students allowed to enroll 1970 new name given, Virginia
Polytechnic University
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Today at Virginia Tech Research university with the largest
full-time student population in Virginia Maintains Corp of Cadets
Enrollment 28,650, 82.5% undergraduate 215 undergraduate and
graduate degree programs 16:1 student-faculty ratio Main campus
over125 buildings, 2,600 acres, and an airport Ranked 44th in
university research in the United States
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Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia
Tech) is a public land-grant university serving the Commonwealth of
Virginia, the nation, and the world community. The discovery and
dissemination of new knowledge are central to its mission. Through
its focus on teaching and learning, research and discovery, and
outreach and engagement, the university creates, conveys, and
applies knowledge to expand personal growth and opportunity,
advance social and community development, foster economic
competitiveness, and improve the quality of life.
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April 16, 2007 Seung Hui Cho Killed 32 students and faculty
Wounded 17 others Cho later shot and killed himself
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The Virginia Tech Massacre
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Virginia Tech Prodromes 1. Cho exhibited signs of mental health
problems throughout this life Selective mutism and depression 2.
During middle school teachers observed homicidal thoughts in his
assignments Received medication 3. Junior year @ VT, several
complaints were sent in regarding Cho 4. 2005-2006, VT Cook
Counseling Center and University Care team failed to communicate
effectively with Cho 5. Chos records went missing allowing him to
purchase guns in the state of Virginia 6.Sister began noticing
problems with Cho, he stopped writing, something that was a strong
therapy outlet for Cho 7. During a night out with his roommates, he
was seen stabbing the carpet in another dorm room 8. Cho harassed
multiple female students on campus and was warned several times by
police to stop 9. Six months prior to the shooting, Cho was
permanently removed from a class University felt as though this
solved all further problems
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Target Audience and Communication Methods: Enabling Publics:
President of the university, Governor of Virginia, FBI, Law
Enforcement (state, local, and university), VT Board of Trustees
Functional Publics: Students, faculty/staff, parents and families
of those who attended or worked at the university Normative
Publics: Surrounding schools and universities Diffused Publics: The
local and national media
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Objectives PREPARATION
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Preparation Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, Tim
Kaine, immediately appointed a panel to go over the series of
events. The panel interviewed over 200 people and looked over
thousands of records in an effort to explain how this event
occurred. The university had immediate problems, its Emergency
Response Plan of Virginia Tech did not have provisions that
addressed what would happen if there were a school shooting. The
President Charles Steger of Virginia Tech, immediately convened the
emergency Policy Group to focus on how they should respond to the
situation.
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Preparation The first message students received via email did
not mention a double murder; it simply stated there was a shooting.
This message also went out via a phone call. Most students and
faculty did not receive the alert before their first class which
meant no classes could be canceled. The Virginia Tech Police
Department, VTPD, mobilized its emergency response teams as soon as
the first shooting occurred. Chief Wendell Flinchum of the VTPD
immediately called for backup from the Blacksburg Police
Department, BPD. Following the immediate response of the VPTD and
the BPD, both law enforcement agencies put its emergency response
teams on alert and placed them at various points around the city
and the campus to respond accordingly.
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How Did Virginia Tech Handle the Crisis? In one of the first
interviews that President Steger had he said the incident was a
possible murder suicide and also a domestic dispute and the police
had identified a suspect in the case. Police reported that they
believed the suspect had left the campus.
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Where Did Things Go Wrong? Police reported that they believed
the suspect had left the campus. Students were not notified that
there was a possible gunman on campus The university was not
notified of the situation at first therefore classes were not
canceled.
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The Policy Group The Policy Group and local law enforcement
were communicating via telephone initially and it wasnt until hours
after the shooting took place that an officer was actually sitting
in on the Policy Group. The message that the policy group came up a
full 2 hours after the shootings occurred contained information
that they felt would best inform the public.
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Jeffery Douglas Jeffery Douglas PRSA member Director of public
relations at Virginia Maryland Regional College of Veterinary
Medicine Crisis Communications expert during the Virginia Tech
shootings. Douglass first assignment as the shootings were taking
place was to find a place to house the hundreds of families that
were arriving on the Virginia Tech campus. The center that Douglas
was in charge of monitored all news media, telephone calls and
other media outlets. According to Douglas, all communication was
routed to this center. Douglas also said that he always had a plan
so that if a reporter were to ever approach him he would know how
to answer and to tell them where to go for more information. Any
and all information that the university shared with the crisis
center Douglas would share with the families and media.
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The Use of Facebook Websites became one of the best ways to
communicate the series of events that were taking place. -They gave
more detailed information on the people involved and the events
occurring The people who were setting up websites were referred to
as the problem-solving group This group of online problem- solvers
created an Im ok at VT Facebook group where students could go to
find out additional information on those involved in this
tragedy.
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Cont. Facebook quickly became a destination for the Virginia
Tech community to talk about the tragedy and get facts about those
associated with the event This may have not been the most credible
source but it did help the community stay informed at the
time.
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Crisis Communication Theory Key Messages CONTAINMENT
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Theories Situational Crisis Communication Theory Apologia
Theory Speech of self-defense that seeks to present a compelling
counter description of organizational actions Fern-Banks and
Excellence Theory
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Key Messages Open and honest with media Spoke with one voice as
well as used the CEO Caring message During the crisis:
Communication was poor After the crisis: Communication
improved
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Compassion Credibility Control Three Cs of Communication
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Compassion Cared about the well being of the Virginia Tech
Community Charles Stegers Initial Response The university is
shocked and indeed horrified that this would befall us, and I want
to extend my deepest and most sincere and profound sympathy to the
families of these victims, which include our students Planned
memorials Convocation the following day of the crisis to start the
healing process Mental health clinics
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Credibility Credible if they exhibit compassion, competence and
expertise, honesty and openness, and commitment and dedication.
Information was incorrect at first, BUT always told the information
that they had.
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Control Had issues with the control of the situation Took a
long time to communicate to community First shooting was reported
at 7:15 am and the second at 9:43am. An e-mail wasnt sent out until
9:26am. Did not cancel class at first, nor did they communicate
that the events were a big deal. They had the wrong information
Clearly not prepared for the crisis that was taking place.
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Communication Strategy Corrective Action University seeking to
repair the damage from the crisis or to take steps to prevent a
repeat of the crisis Charles Steger initially outlined how the
university was going to fix the results of the shooting Convocation
on April 17th Meeting place for families Mental health centers
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After crisis Strengths Weaknesses RECOVERY/LEARNING
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After Crisis Universities across the country evaluated
emergency response systems and tactics. Emergency notification
systems Training and protocol Security enhancement systems and
equipment Screening of applicants and employees
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Effects on the Community Gun laws on eBay Gun control and
regulations Students for Concealed Carry on Campus
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Strengths Honesty with media, students, and community
Compassionate towards victims and their families Had a desire to
move forward Led to national campus security changes
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Weaknesses Poor communication Did not proceed in a timely
manner Received incorrect information