St. Edward’s University Police Department held the first of many training sessions on Oct.15 to discuss how to respond in the event of an active shooter situation.

Students and mostly faculty and administration attended the information session led by UPD Sgt. Bobby Garcia. The next event will be held tonight in Mabee Ballroom C at 5:30 p.m. and another at 8 p.m.

The series of training sessions come after a number of mass shootings across the nation, including the most recent one at the Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, Mischelle Diaz, director of communications said.

“It is really the university’s response to hearing from the university community that there is anxiety, there were questions and that’s why you saw this session come up so quickly.”

Garcia outlined the event to cover four main topics: psychology, active shooter events, disaster response and civilian response.

Psychology: Natural response

Evidence shows an average person reacts in a similar manner when dealing with very stressful events, Garcia said.

“First is denial. ‘Nah, that can’t be happening,’” Garcia said. “It’s a natural thing to assume that, it wasn’t in fact a gunshot, that was fireworks or a car backfiring.”

The second stage, which is the hardest, is deliberation and deciding what you should do. And the final stage is having a plan and going through with it. Those who move through these stages are most likely to survive, Garcia said.

Having a ‘herd mentality’ can help or hurt you, Garcia said. If others are doing nothing, you’re more likely to do nothing. Likewise, if others are acting, you’re more likely to react.

Garcia also says it’s important to keep calm. Deep breathing, and bringing down your blood pressure is a good way to stay calm. Also, shifting your emotions can save your life, meaning rather than being paralyzed by fear, become angry.

“If you’re angry, you’re more inclined to do something,” Garcia said.

Active Shooter Events: No set profile

There is no set profile of an active shooter, according to the F.B.I.

“Anybody is capable of anything at anytime,” Garcia said. “What these people do tend to have in common is what is known as an avenger mindset. They feel wronged in some way by a certain community or person.”

Another common trait for shooters are that they broadcast their intentions before carrying them out. Garcia referenced the Oregon and Virginia Tech shootings, saying each gunman gave warning signs of what they planned on doing.

Only about 26 percent of active shooter events occur in schools, Garcia says. Most occur at a place of business.

55 percent of the time, the shooter has a direct link to where they choose to commit their violent acts.

“If you see something, say something … if something is out of the ordinary or someone is causing you concern, alert folks,” Garcia said.

The number of deaths in an active shooter situation directly related to two factors: how fast the police respond and target availability, how many people are around the shooter.

The average police department takes three minutes to respond and Garcia says UPD will stand behind that response time.

Disaster Response: Avoid, Deny, Defend

The run, hide and fight policy, was recommended in the past, but now law agencies are promoting a new one: avoid, deny and defend.

“If you can, leave, ASAP, take yourself out of the equation,” Garcia said.

If you are behind doors, turn lights off, and lock the door if possible. Barricade doors that swing inward. If the door swings outward, find something to tie, like a belt, to the door handle and hold tightly shut while standing to the side of the door.

The last resort is to defend yourself.

“If you are in a room and you can’t secure the door anymore than you have already, then where you want to be is closest to the door,” Garcia said.

The reason for that is to increase your element of surprise. It will be your best chance at getting the gun away from the shooter.

“We’re trying to grab the gun, that’s what we’re trying to do,” Garcia said. “And then fight, folks, this is not a fair fight … this is fighting for your life.”

Garcia also says your mind is an incredible machine and even if you’re shot, it doesn’t mean you’re out of the fight.

“Fight through it. Have that mindset ‘I am not dying today,” Garcia said.

Civilian response: After police arrive

“Our first priority is to stop the killing,” Garcia said.

You might see officers standing over people and bypassing people calling for help, but the reason for that is to neutralize the threat. The next priority for the police is to help those in most critical need, and finally it is to evacuate the area.

In the likely chaos of an active shooter event, Garcia says the police will not necessarily know who is the perpetrator. Following police directions helps distinguish the good from the bad.

“Don’t be surprised if you have muzzles pointed at you, guns pointed at you,” Garcia said. “If you’re ordered to lie down, face down, or show your hands, don’t take offense to it. That’s what everyone is taught to do.”

Getting trained in CPR and first aid is recommended by UPD in the event paramedics can’t get to the wounded. Community Emergency Response Team (C-CERT) training is available to any campus member, Garcia said.

The Health & Counseling Center is prepared to help if such an event happens, Calvin Kelly, director of the Health & Counseling center said.

“… we understand very clearly that some students may still have some ongoing trauma that is left over as a result of having that kind of experience,” Kelly said. “So we’re there to offer individual and group services to them, as well as to intervene in any way they deem appropriate for any type of assistance that we can do to help them to mitigate this as best as possible.”

Garcia says if you call 911, and tell the Austin Police Department to report a shooting on campus, they might not know exactly where that is, and delay responding time as they notify UPD.

The fastest response would be to contact UPD.

Vice President for Financial Affairs Kim Kvaal says the university is looking into how to improve security across campus, including locks on classroom doors.

“Because the buildings were built in different decades … the doors all operate differently and that is something we’ve decided we’re going to take a look at, are the locks across campus, and see if there is more that needs to be done,” Kvaal said.

However, Garcia believes St. Edward’s is a very safe place.

“This is honestly the safest place in Austin, in my opinion,” Garcia said. “You have your own police department.”