Emergency Notification Systems and Emergency Preparedness

September is National Emergency Preparedness Month, an opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of emergency preparedness in homes, workplaces, colleges and universities, and communities. Institutions of higher education across the country are fine-tuning and test-driving their emergency preparedness plans, testing their emergency notification systems, and conducting awareness sessions for students, faculty, and staff. They are also exploring how they can better leverage information and communications technologies to help them address every phase of emergency management: prevention-mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. The University of Maryland is taking a comprehensive approach to protecting its human, physical, and cyber assets and is exploring the use of social networking to enhance communication with stakeholders.

Colleges and universities around the country, ever more mindful of campus safety, are installing outdoor sirens. The systems can blast spoken messages or tone alerts of danger—and one of the preset messages on many of the public-address systems warns: "There is a shooter on campus. Seek shelter immediately."

Saint Peter’s College responded to a bomb threat and evacuated the campus safely and efficiently thanks to close integration of human systems with IT.

This presentation will explore the challenges that UNC–Wilmington encountered in providing for the broadcast and communication of emergency notification alerts to the at-large campus community. A "layered approach" was adopted by using multiple methods of information delivery to maximize effectiveness and eliminate the reliance on any single technology or delivery system. Since the methods of delivery can be diverse (siren, cable broadcast, Internet, and e-messaging), several departments including information technology, marketing and communications, environmental health and safety, and the university police were involved to create this well-rounded solution.

Whether used for emergency notification or campus outreach, a quick and reliable mass notification service is a requisite for every university campus. Although choosing a mass notification system can be a daunting task, industry standards can help your campus leaders choose the right system for their needs. Whether your institution seeks a mass notification service for emergency use or to help with student enrollment and retention, this session will help you and your technology team lead your campus through the process of deciding which system to purchase. You’ll learn the industry standards and speak with other campuses that have gone through the mass notification selection process.

LSU will report on the results of a test of its emergency text-messaging system and offer lessons learned. This session will examine the strengths and weaknesses of text messaging as part of an emergency notification package and provide insight into managing community expectations regarding emergency notifications.

The popularity of SMS messaging among the college-age demographic, as well as its perceived speed of delivery and ease of use, have led some campus planners to view SMS messaging as the superstar player in an emergency notification strategy. But rapid is not the same as reliable, and ease of use doesn’t equate with robust.

The University of California, Davis hosted this event to provide a forum for the University of California community involved in emergency planning and management to share ideas, plans, challenges and accomplishments related to developing, implementing and managing campus emergency notification systems. The web site includes presentations from the symposium.

Emergency communications systems are no longer an optional service. Many campuses are exploring how information technologies might play a critical role in creating and managing these campus-wide systems for emergency and other communications. Who must be involved in the planning and management of these systems? What policies are needed? What is happening on your campus? Share your experiences and questions with your colleagues as together we sketch out a roadmap to providing this important service.

Emergency notification systems are no longer an optional service. Many campuses are exploring how information technologies might play a critical role in creating and maintaining campus-wide notification systems for emergency and other communications. Who makes the decisions? Who decides the policies for their use? Who buys off-the-shelf systems and who creates their own? Three different campuses will share their experiences and lessons learned. Bring your experiences, thoughts, and questions to this valuable conversation.