NCJ Number
219058
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 34 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2007 Pages: 48,50,52
Date Published
June 2007
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the challenges of campus-wide emergency notification systems.
Abstract
The main argument is that any effective public emergency notification system will take on a multi-layered design in order to reach the most people possible. This type of layered approach uses several different types of technology all at once to alert the target audience of a potential threat. For example, a campus may post e-mails, place automatic telephone calls, use mobile text messages, and computer pop-ups to reach as many people in the target audience as possible. One strategy being considered by Syracuse University is to combine low-tech technology with a high-tech system. This would involve, for example, using a low-tech siren to alert people to check their e-mail or mobile phones for an emergency announcement. The authors offered this article following Virginia Tech’s deadly incident, which caused individuals and organizations nationwide to wonder why staff and students were not better informed. Recently introduced legislation requires that college campuses develop and annually test their emergency notification system. A different Act, passed in 2006, the Warning, Alert, and Response Network (WARN) requires the establishment of a voluntary National Alert System to provide a public communications system capable of alerting the public on a national, regional, or local level to the presence of emergency situations. The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Safety Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act requires colleges and universities to disclose information about crime on and around their campuses. This Act also requires that colleges and universities make timely notices about emergency situations. Exhibits