2008 Woodie Awards
Emergency system appears to work
Thomas Nelson
Issue date: 10/31/07 Section: Campus Life
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Disasters are and always will be part of life. Whether they be natural such as Hurricane Katrina or man-made such as the Virginia Tech shootings, it is a good idea to have a plan in place in the event that a horrific incident should occur. With that in mind, the school has recently implemented a new emergency alert system called Connect-ED.
According to Connect-ED's frequently asked questions, the service "combines the power of the Internet with the pervasiveness of the telephone to give users an affordable and easy-to-use tool to reach out to their communities. Users record a voice message in their own voice using just a telephone or type a message to be sent to text receiving devices."
In the event of an emergency, the system can send voice messages to student's houses, work, and cell phones. Text messages can be sent to cell phones, PDAs and other text-based devices. Written messages can be sent to e-mail accounts. Messages also can be sent to TTY/TDD receiving devices for the hearing impaired.
For those of you who, like me, don't know, TTY stands for telephone typewriter or teletypewriter. TDD stands for telecommunications device for the deaf. They are a series of devices that make it easier for the deaf to communicate over the telephone.
Connect-ED uses what is called multi-modal communication. By employing all the methods mentioned above, it is more likely to reach individuals and tell them that there is an emergency.
Connect-ED says, "During a time-sensitive situation, multi-modal communication is critical as it is a more comprehensive way to reach people in the environment they may be in at the moment an issue arises. Communication is sent simultaneously to all available contact points for each person."
The system has been tested, and after only minor setbacks, it looks like it is working fine.
Sara Weinert, vice president for communications, said, "We uncovered a couple of issues we wouldn't have known about if we hadn't tested."
According to Connect-ED's frequently asked questions, the service "combines the power of the Internet with the pervasiveness of the telephone to give users an affordable and easy-to-use tool to reach out to their communities. Users record a voice message in their own voice using just a telephone or type a message to be sent to text receiving devices."
In the event of an emergency, the system can send voice messages to student's houses, work, and cell phones. Text messages can be sent to cell phones, PDAs and other text-based devices. Written messages can be sent to e-mail accounts. Messages also can be sent to TTY/TDD receiving devices for the hearing impaired.
For those of you who, like me, don't know, TTY stands for telephone typewriter or teletypewriter. TDD stands for telecommunications device for the deaf. They are a series of devices that make it easier for the deaf to communicate over the telephone.
Connect-ED uses what is called multi-modal communication. By employing all the methods mentioned above, it is more likely to reach individuals and tell them that there is an emergency.
Connect-ED says, "During a time-sensitive situation, multi-modal communication is critical as it is a more comprehensive way to reach people in the environment they may be in at the moment an issue arises. Communication is sent simultaneously to all available contact points for each person."
The system has been tested, and after only minor setbacks, it looks like it is working fine.
Sara Weinert, vice president for communications, said, "We uncovered a couple of issues we wouldn't have known about if we hadn't tested."
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