Text messages, email alerts to go to EMU students, staff in emergencies

Everyone wants to know when danger is afoot. Eastern Michigan University, learning from recent events, is the latest college to employ new technologies to alert its students when tragedy strikes.

 

EMU is setting up an emergency alert system that will send text messages and emails to students and staff at the university whenever a dangerous situation arises. Eastern is setting up the system right now and expects to start testing it in April.

 

The system can send 24,000 text messages in 15 minutes or less. The overall speeds, however, are determined by the number of people signing up for the alert service. Only students and staff who sign up will receive it.

 

Other local universities have established similar services, such as Wayne State University, Michigan State University and University of Michigan. Many other universities around the country have also done or are doing the same thing.

 

Tragedies on campus have grabbed headlines recently, ranging from the shootings at Virginia Tech to the murder of an EMU student last year. Both incidents generated controversy over how quickly the campus was alerted about the incidents.

EMU will evaluate the system, provided by Rave Wireless, this year before deciding whether to extend it beyond that time period. To sign up for the service, click here.

 

Source: Rocky Jenkins, spokesman for Eastern Michigan University

Writer: Jon Zemke