February 15, 2008

Northern Illinois U. Had No System for Sending Emergency Messages to Cellphones

Soon after a gunman opened fire in a classroom at Northern Illinois University yesterday, campus administrators sent an emergency-alert message to students, professors, and staff members via campus e-mail and voice mail, and they posted information on the campus Web site. But the university did not have a system that could send emergency messages via text message to cellphones — a method that a growing number of colleges have set up since the shootings last spring at Virginia Tech.

Marc Ladin, vice president for global marketing at 3N, which makes a text-message alert system used by about 100 colleges and universities in the United States, said some colleges using the service had encouraged students to enter the cellphone numbers of their parents, as well as their own. He said such a system would have been particularly useful at Northern Illinois, where some students reportedly had trouble calling home because the area’s cellphones were overloaded at one point. “It helps to create a sense of calm,” said Mr. Ladin. “When people don’t have correct information, it makes them think the worst.”

A staff member at Northern Illinois said a siren sounded on the campus for about half an hour yesterday afternoon — a low-tech way to signal an emergency. Mr. Ladin said that other colleges had been installing sirens in recent months, Virginia Tech among them.

Northern Illinois University’s first emergency message, posted at 3:20 p.m. yesterday, said: “There has been a report of a possible gunman on campus. Get to a safe area and take precautions until given the all clear. Avoid the King Commons and all buildings in that vicinity.”

A message posted on the university’s Web site at 3:50 p.m. said: “It has been confirmed that there has been a shooting on campus and several people have been taken away by ambulance. All NIU campuses are closed and classes are canceled for tonight and tomorrow (2/15/08) on the DeKalb campus. People are urged not to come to campus. More information will be posted as it becomes available.” —Jeffrey R. Young

Comments

1. We at Troy University implemented our text alert system during fall semester 2007. As of this month, a spring semester drive was being conducted in order to try to attain 100% student/faculty/staff participation.

   — Stephen    Feb 15, 05:33 PM    #

2. Stephen you have hit the nail on the head, at issue is when a university is sold an emergency alert system and then, it is left up to the university to keep the people live and up to date, so in the event of a true emergency people can be contacted.

   That is why a national system is much more effective, because if is used by more than one place as in this case Troy University. It makes so much more sense to have a system that the Federal, State, City and yes Universities all use. When it comes to safety students and parents should demand a system that connected with agencies that will be coming to assist in the event of an emergency.

   Troy may be already on the FAST system and if they are hats off to them that is a step in the right direction

   — Robert Craddock    Feb 15, 05:56 PM    #

3. Our campus has such a warning system. Despite wide advertising (including what we hope is a teachable moment today), only a small percentage of students, faculty, and staff have signed up for the service.

   — j    Feb 15, 06:24 PM    #

4. I understand that nationally fewer than 25% of students at campuses with text messaging warning systems have actually signed up for it … can anyone confirm that?

   — Charlie    Feb 15, 06:40 PM    #

5. My daughter was gunned down at VT. Currently, during disasters, we need land-lines. At VT, 58 Hokies were slaughtered b/c “leadership” chose NOT to notifiy of the first murders 2.5 hrs earlier.

   Failure of leadership trumps technology. VT chose “damage control” over notification.

   — debster    Feb 15, 07:39 PM    #

6. Many instructors lock their classroom doors at the beginning of class to discourage tardiness. Would such a policy instituted campus-wide as standard practice reduce the chances of intruders invading the classroom?

   — Brian    Feb 16, 09:02 AM    #

7. Most classroom doors at my institution have no lock. Would that I could lock out tardies and intruders. However, I would refuse to enter a classroom in which students are allowed to carry firearms.

   — Skeptical    Feb 16, 10:02 AM    #

8. Cell-phone warnings are extremely limited. I do not carry a cell phone with me to classes or to meetings, nor do I allow cell-phone use in my classes. I believe that the low-tech siren is a good way to alert everyone to check their cell phones for urgent messages. A siren will reach those who are in the shower or asleep as well as those in or between classes.

   — PJ    Feb 16, 10:06 AM    #

9. We have to think about this from a student’s mindset. The issue is not how to warn faculty and staff since most of us have/ use university voicemail and have the university website as our home pages. So we as faculty are easier to get a hold of. Students aren’t. They text message and look at facebook.We need to ASK incoming students how we can best serve them. something like “in the event of an emergency how can you best be reached.” or be blunt. Its the elephant in the room. Ask students how to best notify them of a gunman on campus. Then have all incoming students fill this out. Or if you have on-line registration have them update the question and information each time they register.

   PJ- The issue with a siren is will the students stay inside or think the alarm means run outside and become a target. Back when I was a student (and an RA) when I head alarms my first response was to vacate the building. What if there is a student shooting from a clock tower? or even like at Columbine multipule shoots in hallways. The safest place might be to stay in the classroom/hall.

   — Bita    Feb 16, 08:57 PM    #

10. I disagree with Mr. Craddock who said make it a government responsibility. The many layers of red tape to get through to activate an alarm would only delay the process. With a local system, college administrative officials can send the alarm, and I feel certain that 911 could also be added as a voice message, thus notifying the ‘authorities’ that will be responding to the situation.
    By requiring you to ‘‘opt-in’ every time you register for classes, the database would be kept current for the current student body. If you chose to ‘opt-out’ of the notification, then you would at least be required to provide your next of kin notification info.
    Danger is around every corner in today’s society. It is up to us as individuals to do what we can to protect ourselves, and not expect someone else to do it.

    — Charlie    Feb 18, 07:40 AM    #

11. I am a doctoral student in Adult and Higher Education at Northern Illinois University and I work in the Graduate School as a records specialist. I do not and have never owned a cellphone. We knew in the Grad school about the shooting at the same time the police were responding because a coworker’s wife called us. We knew at 3pm and I used the NIU landlines to call my teacher and other people around campus. I was very angry to see that article about NIU not having text messaging. I felt it was opportunistic and some one trying to sell a product.

    — Ann Marie O'Brien    Feb 18, 11:22 AM    #

12. P.S. Shortly thereafter, my coworkers’ cell phone service was jammed and not working.

    — Ann Marie O'Brien    Feb 18, 11:28 AM    #

13. Does anyone else get the uneasy feeling that Marc Ladin, vice president for global marketing at 3N, might be using a tragedy to try to boost his sales? I’ve just decided not to consider his product.

    — James    Feb 18, 03:58 PM    #

14. James. You’ll pardon me if I consider your opinion foolishness and encourage others to do the same. Our institution decided to use 3N and, while we pray it never gets used in such a circumstance, it is reassuring to have it there. It is just one part of an overall strategy of communication with one goal in mind – the safety of our students and our community. I don’t know Mr. Ladin, but the points he makes are valid and do not seem self-serving. I do not know why Ann Marie O’Brien does “not and have never owned a cell phone.” That seems like a personal decision, however, and it does not, in and of itself, lessen the value of text messaging as a method of informing the students and the community.

    Regarding NIU. The coward killed himself after only a minute or two without leaving the building. Text messaging would not have helped anyone avoid the immediate tragedy. Had he left, however, and committed more carnage 10 or 15 minutes later in another building, I can assure you that the media would be screaming that NIU hadn’t learned the lessons of Virginia Tech and many would be calling for heads to roll. I’m not saying that would be a valid position. . .just that it would happen.

    — Bill    Feb 19, 07:50 AM    #

15. I am a staff member at an affected campus. I agree that text messaging is a useful PART of effective communications to students, and staff, but the message content must not only be timely, but in a few words give useful and clear information.
    While I feel for Debster, in the VT incident I feel confident, after long consideration, that there was no reason to think that the shooter would attack again after the first incident and that damage control (without quotes) was happening with the victims and their community in that building. We now know different, but the decision makers had no crystal balls or time machines needed to predict the events of the rest of the day.
    The more methods of communications the better, and accurate, well written information is key. Don’t be mislead by media hype, do your own thinking and put yourself in the shoes of the campus leadership.
    My prayers go to all involved in these situations.

    — Ron    Feb 19, 10:03 AM    #

16. Because these rampages happen so fast and randomly, and are basically confined to one campus location, cell phone alert systems are probably of marginal value to safety; their larger potential is to quickly disseminate official information. Schools and colleges have a larger vested interest in pressuring lawmakers to mandate systems to keep gun dealers from selling to people with any documented history of mental illness.

    — marci    Feb 19, 11:45 AM    #

17. the typical thing to happen in the case of disasters is that telephone lines get jammed. The usual guideline in case of an alarm is not to start calling around (or sending mass sms) to keep the lines open. With mass texting notification (which will get forwarded), the college is in effect directly contributing to a direct jamming of all communication.

    — peter    Feb 20, 05:07 AM    #

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