Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP)
The all-hazards approach to COOP planning ensures UMW faculty, staff, students and visitors that regardless of the emergency, essential functions and services will continue to operate and be provided in some capacity. This approach includes preparing for emergencies ranging from natural, manmade, technological, and weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
The document establishes UMW’s COOP program procedures for addressing three types of disruptions:
Denial of access to a facility (such as damage to the building);
Denial of service due to a reduced workforce (such as due to pandemic flu); and
Denial of service due to equipment or systems failure (such as IT systems failure).
It also provides policy and guidance to ensure the capability to implement actions to continue essential functions within the recovery priority timeframes established by the UMW COOP Team to maintain essential functions for up to thirty (30) days.
UMW is committed to the safety and protection of its employees, operations, and facilities. The COOP Plan provides UMW department’s and their personnel a framework that is designed to minimize potential impact during an emergency incident.
COOP Plans are vital during emergency situations. COOP is the preservation, maintenance, and reconstitution of a universities ability to deliver its essential functions to faculty, staff, students and visitors.
UMW’s Basic COOP Plan is intended to support COOP plans which have been developed by departments to address emergency situations that cause a disruption in the essential functions to their faculty, staff, students or visitorsThe organizational departments, which are covered by the Basic COOP Plan are:
- Office of News and Public Information (department)
- Public Safety and Community Services
- Human Resources
- Registrar’s Office
- Business and Finance
- Dining Services
- Stafford Campus
- Facilities Services
- Residence Life
- Information Technologies
- Office of the President (division)
- Student Health Services
The UMW COOP will enable the University community to maintain the infrastructure of the essential functions of the institution. All departments have been briefed on the COOP and are trained in its activation and support. Plans are available in all listed departments for review and each department is responsible for the training and awareness of their departmental staff. Distribution of the plan is made through department heads as well as electronic access on a secure website. All COOP coordinators have been issues flash drives for easy update and portability.