PROCEDURES FOR POLICY: 2-05
VCCS POLICY NO: 10.7
REVISED DATE: 05/25/2023

  1. Purpose:

    To provide guidance to instructor, staff, and students regarding safety in high-risk instructional programs.

    The procedures for implementation of this policy are provided below.

  2. Procedure and/or Process Definitions:

    High-risk courses: any course offered within a high-risk instructional program that carries the course prefix associated with the academic program (i.e., does not include general education courses) or that meets the above definition of content related to a high-risk instructional program, as defined by the VCCS, including non-credit courses offered by the Community College Workforce Alliance (CCWA) at a site approved by J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College (Reynolds).

    High-risk instructional programs: as defined by the Virginia Community College System (VCCS), instructional programs that have identified hazards, either known hazards or potential hazards, with the propensity to cause injury or illness.

    High-risk laboratory: instructional space related to the applied, hands-on practice of content related to high-risk courses in industrial technology programs.

  3. Procedures:

    1. Supervision of students in laboratories

      1. Each high-risk instructional program will require direct supervision of all students in lab spaces at all times. Supervision must be provided by an official college instructor or administrative staff with supervisory qualifications specified in their job description.

      2. If the lab supervisor must leave the lab space for any reason for any period of time, all students must cease work immediately and power down all equipment, unless the instructor is replaced by another instructor who is knowledgeable of safety procedures in that specific lab and who can serve as the substitute lab instructor.

    2. Instructor(s) shall remain current in their industry

      1. All credit and non-credit instructors and staff affiliated with high-risk instructional programs must meet minimum, annual professional development requirements for training, and maintain appropriate certifications as required or suggested by the field in which they teach, as stipulated by their supervisor and/or employee work profile/position description.

      2. The college will maintain an up-to-date and well-qualified program advisory committee for each high-risk instructional program that includes highly qualified individuals from within relevant fields, as stipulated by Reynolds Policy 2-11, Advisory Committees. Each advisory committee will provide information to the dean, department chair, program instructor and staff and to applicable CCWA faculty regarding current trends and best safety practices in the field on at least an annual basis.

    3. High-risk laboratory safety manuals

      1. The department chair for each high-risk instructional program must develop and maintain a laboratory safety manual that includes current safety standards as developed by industry, accrediting body, or appropriate standards-setting organization. The manual must be written in a manner that is easy to understand and, to the extent possible, free from technical jargon. Credit and non-credit programs will use the manual approved by the academic credit program in lab settings where both types of programming are offered. CCWA will develop safety guidelines for any programming that is not offered for credit.

      2. All instructors, staff, and credit and non-credit students in high-risk instructional programs will familiarize themselves with the appropriate laboratory safety manual for their respective programs. Instructor and staff evaluation plans for each employee assigned to a high-risk instructional program will require verification by the respective department chair of the employee’s review and understanding of the relevant laboratory safety manual. For non-credit, short-duration programs, CCWA instructors will provide a safety rules summary sheet prior to conducting any lab work.

    4. Classroom and laboratory rules of behavior

      1. Each department chair for each high-risk instructional program will develop a set of rules of behavior governing student conduct in the classroom and in the laboratory. The school dean or program lead for the relevant CCWA program will review and approve this document, including any subsequent revisions. This document will reside as an appendix in the laboratory safety manual for each program and must be reviewed by students simultaneously with review of the safety manual. Credit and non-credit students will adhere to the same set of rules of behavior.

      2. Each student enrolled as a major student in a high-risk instructional program or course must sign an assumption of risk form, at least once per calendar year. CCWA participants in high-risk instructional programs will sign the form prior to starting any program of instruction.

      3. Students who violate program rules of behavior will be subject to disciplinary action as stipulated in Reynolds Policy 1-35, Student Conduct.

      4. Instructors in high-risk instructional courses will ensure that all classroom and laboratory rules of behavior are outlined in their course syllabi; and department chairs/supervisors for high-risk instructional programs will make sure that instructors enforce these rules in a consistent manner.

    5. Familiarity with emergency equipment

      1. Each instructor and staff member assigned to a high-risk instructional program must be familiar with emergency equipment that resides in the program’s classroom and laboratory spaces, including fire extinguishers and automated external defibrillators (AED’s).

      2. Each instructor and staff member assigned to a high-risk instructional program must review Reynolds Policy 4-37, Fire Prevention, as well as the college’s Fire Prevention Plan.

      3. Department chairs in high-risk credit instructional programs must review the location and operation of relevant emergency equipment with all instructor and staff assigned to high-risk instructional programs at least once each semester.

    6. Safety procedures and emergency training

      1. The school dean and their staff, department chairs, and instructor in credit courses will ensure that all students enrolled in any high-risk instructional program or course review safety procedures and how to use relevant emergency equipment pertinent to the learning environment. Students will acknowledge verification of understanding by signing the assumption of risk form.

      2. Course outlines/syllabi for all high-risk courses shall list requirements for the use of safety equipment and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and shall also detail which equipment is required and which equipment is recommended but not required. The dean of the school and department chairs/supervisors will monitor instructor syllabi each semester to ensure inclusion of this information. The CCWA Associate Vice President for Sector Strategies and Programs will ensure the same is done for non-credit programs as they are developed and offered.

    7. OSHA standards and signage

      1. Instructors for high-risk instructional programs will ensure that all lab spaces are clean and well organized and that they meet all Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.

      2. The school dean (credit programs) and the CCWA Operations Specialist will work with the college’s director of facilities management and planning to develop and display appropriate safety signage within all high-risk instructional program labs to include direction to the nearest exit and location of safety equipment.

    8. Equipment Inspections and Preventive Maintenance

      1. The school dean (credit) or the CCWA Operations Specialist will work with the director of facilities, management and planning to conduct inspections of equipment on a regular basis, as recommended by the manufacturer.

      2. The VPAA, VPWD, and Vice President of Finance and Administration (VPFA) are responsible for ensuring that funding required for preventive maintenance is part of the annual operating budget for high-risk programs.

    9. Accident handling and reporting

      1. Any personal injury to an employee, student or third party should be immediately dealt with following the Reynolds Emergency Procedures. Report the accident to the employee’s supervisor, the human resources department and campus police. The VPFA will work with campus police on the Incident Report and external reporting requirements. There will be requests for photographs of the incident.

      2. The faculty member should complete JSRCC Form 15-0003, Incident / Accident / Injury Report for Non-Employees.

  4. Other Information:

    Chancellor’s Memorandum for High-Risk Programs

    VCCS Best Practices Safety Inventory for High Risk Instructional Programs

    VCCS Guidance on Best Practices Safety Inventory for High-Risk Instructional Programs

    Assumption of the Risk Form

    Reynolds Fire Prevention Plan

    Reynolds Policy 1-35, Student Conduct

    Reynolds Policy 2-11, Advisory Committees

    Reynolds Policy 4-37, Fire Prevention

    JSRCC Form 15-0003, Incident/Accident/Injury Report for Non-Employees