DETROIT ? With the recent shooting tragedy at Virginia Tech in mind, Wayne State University has launched a broadcast messaging service that lets cell phone users registered for the service to receive text messages in case of a campus wide emergency.
The emergency messaging capability will be tested Aug. 24 during a simulated gunman-in-a-building exercise planned by the WSU Public Safety Department. An emergency text message will be sent to a prearranged sampling of individuals who have signed up for the service.
?We recognize the need to address students? evolving communication preferences,? said Joseph Sawasky, associate vice president for computing and information technology and chief information officer. ?With the recent tragedy in Virginia, we placed a real priority on this new and innovative emergency broadcast messaging service.?
Students, faculty and staff also can choose to receive university messages by WSU e-mail or instant message (IM).
The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting comprising two separate attacks about two hours apart on April 16 on campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 25 before committing suicide, making it the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history.
?Today?s technologies provide a means for us to communicate almost instantly with members of our campus community, and we felt it was important to put that capability to use,? said Wayne State President Irvin D. Reid. ?We wanted to be able to provide important information quickly and accurately, especially in emergency situations. In our increasingly mobile and electronically oriented society, broadcast text messaging and instant messaging are particularly effective tools for this kind of communication.?
Historically, Wayne State?s emergency notification procedures have included e-mail, a hotline, radio/TV news alerts and the university?s Web site. Broadcast text messaging augments these procedures by providing quick and convenient notification. Emergency alerts reach their intended recipients almost instantly, as most cell phone users carry their phones with them.
Wayne State does not charge a fee to register a mobile phone number or to send text messages through its Broadcast Messaging Service. However, per-message fees from cellular service providers may apply.
As an added convenience, cell phone registrants can pause delivery of non-emergency WSU text messages to their cell phones during a specific time of day. Non-emergency messages are not sent to students and faculty during class hours.
Planned upgrades to Wayne State’s new broadcast messaging service over the next year will add different types of messages, such as course announce�ments, WSU news, notices to faculty and staff by building, or promotional offerings. As each message type is added, students, faculty and staff will be able to choose whether to receive them and how (by cell phone, IM or e-mail).
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