The TitansCARE team is working to ensure the health and safety of our campuses, but we can’t do this alone—we need everyone’s continued involvement.

How you can help:

1. Faculty, share the TitansCARE informational brochure with your students. It explains the purpose of ATC’s TitansCARE team and how to report a concern. You can go over it together in class without taking too much instructional time. Students, you can view the brochure by clicking here.
2. Reflect on your recent interactions with students, faculty and staff. If you have witnessed any concerning behaviors, report them to the TitansCARE team as soon as possible. It’s simple, safe and confidential, and it only takes a few minutes. Click here for the Concern Report Form.
3. If you’re not sure about what to report, check out the examples of concerning behaviors listed below.
4. Sometimes it takes a few weeks to get acquainted with new students before a pattern of concerning behaviors becomes apparent, so be on the lookout for any warning signs that emerge as you progress through the semester. If you feel uncertain about a situation, consult with one of our members by calling or emailing us, our contact information is listed on the website and the brochure.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us. Thanks for helping us keep ATC a safe and healthy learning community!

What is TitansCARE?

Albany Technical College (ATC) seeks to provide a safe and supportive learning environment for our students, faculty and staff. To ensure the ongoing safety of our campus, ATC has designated a team of specially trained staff to respond to concerns that may impact the safety and well-being of our college community. This team is called TitansCARE. The mission of TitansCARE is to provide a proactive and supportive multi-disciplinary team approach to campus safety by identifying individuals who demonstrate behaviors that are disruptive or threatening.

Examples of concerning behaviors

• Repeated or excessive classroom disruptions
• Inappropriate or exaggerated emotional responses to a given situation
• Loss of contact with reality including rambling or incoherent speech, laughter that is out of context, visual, tactile or auditory hallucinations
• Significant decline in academic performance
• Repeated or excessive classroom disruption
• Drunkenness or being under the influence of illicit drugs on campus property
• Threatening words or actions (directly threatening others)
• Writings that convey clear intentions to harm self or others
• Observed self-injurious behavior
• Online postings in social media such as Facebook, Instagram, SnapChat, blogs, websites, e-portfolios, class journals, etc. that involve direct and explicit threats
• Suicidal behavior, including threats (“I am going to kill myself”), gestures (pointing a finger to the head to indicate shooting) expressions of suicidal ideation (“I’ve always thought about killing myself by taking pills”)
• Acts or overt expressions motivated by hatred or discrimination
• Paranoia or delusion (a student groundlessly believes they are being targeted)
• Stalking a staff member or another student
• Intimate partner violence

Faculty, staff, and students who are concerned about behavior that is disturbing, disruptive or distressed but does not pose an imminent danger should complete a TitansCARE Incident Report Form. Please note you may choose to remain anonymous, but if the team needs additional details and you do not provide your contact information, we may not be able to conduct a proper and thorough assessment.

Will my report be kept confidential?

A person in distress has a right to privacy. In most situations, information provided by the person reporting a concern is confidential and is only released with that person’s permission.

Written records, including student conduct reports, are protected by the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Except in extraordinary circumstances, permission to release this information is to be given by the student in writing.

FERPA does permit the release of information when necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or others.

What does TitansCARE do?

Once the report is received, the TitansCARE team will develop an appropriate response plan. The response will be based on the nature of the behavior, the severity of the risk, and the needs of the individual. The TitansCARE team conducts a professional assessment to help understand each person’s individual need and to evaluate risk levels when a person’s behavior may endanger their own or others’ health and safety. After each report has been evaluated, the TitansCARE team implements a timely intervention specifically tailored to address the needs of the individuals involved. The TitansCARE Team works to ensure that ATC students, faculty and staff access the specific resources they need as quickly as possible.

What TitansCARE is NOT

TitansCARE is not crisis management. A crisis may be defined where a person may pose an active or immediate risk of violence to self or others. Anyone in the ATC community who observes an emergency or behavior that is dangerous or severe should contact ATC Campus Police at 229-430-4711 or 911 immediately.

TitansCARE does not adjudicate, discipline or impose sanctions against any member of the campus community, nor does it provide or mandate treatment and, therefore, is not a disciplinary body.