Emergency Notification Systems and Emergency Preparedness Plans

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.

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.

(Wally) Czerniak was attending a conference in Arizona where he was learning, among other things, about emergency-notification systems that can send text messages to cellphones - a method that a growing number of colleges have set up since the shootings last spring at Virginia Tech. But Mr. Czerniak still isn't sure whether such a system would have done much good in keeping people on campus updated as the crisis unfolded if it had been in place at Northern Illinois.

When an incident requiring emergency communications evolves on campus there must be multiple levels to a response. Furthermore, the response required transcends the question of adequate emergency communications technologies and systems. Key advance preparation items include ensuring that the correct technological services have been deployed, that personnel have proper training, and that planning is in place so that appropriate internal and external agencies all work together in concert to address and resolve the incident as effectively as possible. The panel will discuss emergency communications management, including technologies and systems, and planning needs for all of the relevant areas.

"Students arriving on campus this semester are getting a new task added to their to-do lists: Log onto "Who I Am" and provide emergency contact information.

The new service is the latest upgrade to Cornell's ongoing emergency planning effort. Since the late 1990s, well before 9/11 and recent U.S. campus shootings, Cornell has had a team of officials and responders dedicated to planning for events most people don't want to think about."