III.B.1. The institution assures safe and sufficient physical resources at all locations where it offers courses, programs, and learning support services. They are constructed and maintained to assure access, safety, security, and a healthful learning and working environment.
ASCC consists of one campus located in the village of Mapusaga. It has approximately 53 acres with more than 26,000 square feet of physical facility space. There are 27 buildings1 total to provide services in support of student learning. Included in these structures are 47 classrooms, 21 instructional labs, and six general computer labs.
Currently under construction is the Multi Purpose Center (MPC), which will house Student Services and the 500 maximum capacity auditorium for programs and learning support services activities. The Capital Improvement Project under the U.S. Department of Interior funds the construction of MPC.
To ensure the safety of the institution’s facilities, the following criteria are adhered to for all facilities: the 1967 Uniform Building Code (UBC), the 2012 American Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements for accessibility, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Standards, and the 2006 International Building Code (IBC) requirements.The Department of Public Works conducts inspection throughout each phase of construction.
For continuous compliance with regulatory agencies, the Compliance Safety Officer (CSO) accesses all new, renovation, and relocation projects. Upon meeting all building codes standards, Certificate of Occupancy is issued by the American Samoa Public Work (AS-PW).
Installation of solar lights in parking and isolated areas increased the security of facilities at night.
ASCC follows internal processes to ensure the safety of facilities. These include:
- Physical Facilities Management (PFM) personnel conduct safety checks of facilities and campus grounds in their areas.
- Security personnel conduct daily routine safety checks of the campus during and after school hours. 2
- Upon request for repairs, safety inspections and assessment of facilities are conducted before work is carried out.3
- Staff and Faculty report safety concerns within their departments and surrounding areas through the use of Job Order forms, which are submitted to PFM. 4
- For Physical Facilities Requests by community members/organizations, ASCC provides Security and Custodial personnel to ensure the safety of campus facilities while in use.
- Evacuation plans for safety drills are in place.5
- Compliance checks are done by AS-EPA for labs and hazardous materials storage and AS-DOH for Cafeteria.
ASCC follows specific criteria and processes required for new construction of facilities and any major renovation or repair to facilities. The following steps are required by the American Samoa Government (ASG) and Semi-autonomous agencies for new construction, renovation, or repair to facilities:
- Submit an application for a Land Use Permit (LUP)
- Schedule the inspection by Project Notification Review System (PNRS) Board consisting of the following agency representatives who conduct ongoing inspections to ensure compliance to building, safety, environmental and health codes:
- Department of Commerce (DOC),
- American Samoa Department of Public Works (ASDPW),
- American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA),
- American Samoa Department of Health (ASDOH),
- American Samoa Power Authority (ASPA)
- Obtain approval of LUP by PNRS Board
- Obtain the Building permit issued by the ASDPW based on their review of UBC and IBC codes.
- Receive the safety checklist from the ASDPW for compliance issues
- Obtain a Certificate of Occupancy upon completion of construction
The institution determines the sufficiency of classrooms, lecture halls, laboratories, and other facilities through several processes. Each semester Academic Affairs schedules courses and labs for all course offerings. A Facility Request Form (requiring approval by the Vice President of Administrative Service and Finance or President) is routed for written approval if facilities are to be used outside of the scheduled course use. Sufficiency of facilities is also documented within regular reports and documents including the Quarterly Reports, Bi-weekly Reports, student enrollment data and classroom schedules, and the Student Satisfaction Survey (Facilities and Campus section). Academic Affairs prepares an analysis of classroom use every semester to ensure that physical resources are used effectively and that there are adequate classrooms for all scheduled courses.6
Various mechanisms are used to evaluate the effectiveness of the institution in meeting the needs of programs and services. Actual Expenditure Reports list expenses for facility repair and maintenance. Job Order Summary Reports document actual work performed on facilities with a comment section filled out by the division/department. The Student Satisfaction Survey provides students with an avenue to give feedback on facility adequacy and service effectiveness. The Institution Program Review (IPR), Divisional Assessment Program Review (DAPR), and the Academic Program Review (APR) allow staff and faculty to comment on facility adequacy and service effectiveness. All institutional facility priorities are identified through these mechanisms and allow the institution to address facility needs through its Institutional Strategic Plan.
ASCC does not have off-campus instructional sites however there are off-campus Community and Natural Resources (CNR) stations in Ta’u and Ofu, Manu’a. The external processes described above are the same for these stations. Similar internal processes are followed to determine safety and sufficiency of the off campus facilities; however, assessment for the safety of the Manu’a sites by the CNR station manager is done upon request by groups who visit the sites regularly. The responsibility for Security is shared through a partnership with the American Samoa Department of Education (ASDOE) who also utilizes the Manu’a facilities.
With the assessment of Job Order requests, a need was identified to improve the Job Order process to expedite job completion. Analysis of the results led to the development and improvement of Standard Operating Procedures for facility management.
With the analysis of Institutional Program Review results on facilities, the following improvements were made:
- Allocation of $56,000 for Fiscal Year 2016 for maintaining facilities.
- ASCC employees have been trained on the process of obtaining materials and services needed for facility improvement.
- Justification for MIS Trackit software to be extended for use by PFM to track job orders that are currently monitored manually.
- Compliance Safety Officer (CSO) position has been filled.
- The CSO continues to assess the institution facilities to address any concerns from students, faculty, and staff.
Similar internal processes are used to assure the safety and sufficiency of the equipment to also include:
- Annual inspection of vehicles for insurance purposes
- Property Management tagging of all maintenance equipment
- Fixed asset annual inventory
- Property Management personnel use of “Survey and Disposal” forms to assess and replace equipment including vehicles
- Purchase of equipment with warranties and maintenance plans. Service manuals are also included in purchase to be used internally for care and maintenance by personnel.
- Service of heavy equipment is outsourced to external vendors for the maintenance of equipment and vehicles
ASCC does not offer distance education but programs such as ASCC Land Grant and Samoan Studies Institute provide mobile equipment to be used in service, program outreach and documentation for off-campus activities. The institution provides vehicles and equipment for recruitment, outreach, student practicum, field experience and service learning.
The equipment provided is sufficient for institutional needs. These are evident in the following reports:
- Actual Expenditure Report (available for review on campus upon request)
- Fixed Asset Report
- Divisional Assessment Report