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In the year since a failing UA student murdered three professors, ASU officials said they have taken appropriate steps in preventing a similar tragedy from occurring here.

Some faculty members, however, fear they are inadequately prepared to handle such a situation.

Early detection

Califa Rojas, program coordinator for ASU Student Life, said that despite an increase in outreach and consultation requests for "troubled students" in the past year, the department has referred them to the appropriate resources, such as Counseling and Consultation.

Martha Dennis Christian-sen, director of Counseling and Consultation, said that since the tragedy the department has taken a "proactive approach" in increasing awareness of its services.

While she did not have specific numbers, Christiansen said the department also has experienced an increase in calls from faculty concerned about troubled students.

Rojas said that by identifying troubled students early on, Student Life can get them needed assistance before they pose a threat to themselves or others.

Tragic anniversary

On Oct. 28, 2002, Robert S. Flores Jr. shot and killed three UA nursing professors before turning the gun on himself.

Flores had a history of academic trouble and psychological distress. In 1997, a UA adviser wrote that Flores appeared to be "clearly on the edge," but the warning was not processed through a central office at the university.

ASU officials reviewed their policies in the wake of the UA tragedy, Rojas said, and following changes to ASU policy last spring, Student Life has become a clearing house to track students who were removed from the classroom for disruptive behavior.

ASU deputy general counsel Nancy Tribbensee said this centralized system allows officials to watch problem students across multiple colleges.

Prior to the changes to the policy, which has existed since 1985, instructor-initiated withdrawals were reported only to the dean's office of the college that offers the course.

Tribbensee said that with the policy changes, Student Life officials also determine if additional University actions, such as suspension or expulsion, are necessary.

The policy defines this behavior as that which "disrupts the educational process" and is "defined by the instructor."

Students also have 10 days to appeal an instructor-initiated withdrawal to the standards committee of their own college, as well as the college where the course is offered.

Tribbensee said officials also would work at smoothing things over and keeping disruptive students in a class.

"If they're disrupting the class so that other students are affected or the faculty member can't teach the class, then we need to get them out of there," Tribbensee said.

Worst-case scenario

In a worst-case scenario similar to the Flores incident, supply-chain management professor Sue Siferd is concerned faculty members would be unaware of what to do.

"We as faculty are not well-educated on how to respond to any number of emergency situations, much less incidents like the UA tragedy," she said.

Siferd, who recently became a member of the Academic Senate's student-faculty policy committee, said that a mandatory annual review of emergency procedures might help keep faculty members better informed.

Antonio Garcia, the Academic Senate president and a bioengineering professor, said there was more awareness of the issue following the tragedy, "then the level of awareness drops off, just like everything in our society."

Garcia added that the Academic Senate's Web site details procedures on how to deal with disruptive and distressed students and how to handle emergency situations.

Christiansen said Counseling and Consultation tries to make faculty and staff aware of its services by sending out materials and e-mails.

Siferd said faculty members receive numerous e-mails regarding University policies and procedures, but said she felt the information could get lost in the shuffle.

"I think we take this topic somewhat cavalierly; I think we just think it's never going to happen to us."

Reach the reporter at benjamin.leatherman@asu.edu.


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