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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, February 29, 2008

UH offers emergency text alerts to students

Photo galleryPhoto gallery: UH emergency messages

By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

UH can text message emergency alerts to cell phones.

JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser

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SPREAD THE WORD

UH students can register for the emergency messages at www.hawaii.edu/emergency

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Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

The University of Hawai'i sends out emergency information that can be accessed by cell phone or online.

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The text-messaging generation at the University of Hawai'i yesterday was asked to embrace UH's latest idea to improve communications during life-and-death campus emergencies.

UH officials sent e-mails to all 50,000 students in the 10-campus system encouraging them to register for emergency text messages — at the students' expense. But after deadly experiences at two Mainland universities, UH officials expect only 10 percent of the students to sign up.

"I hate to say it, but I guess they don't care enough," said David Lassner, UH's vice president for information technology and chief information officer.

Several students outside UH-Manoa's campus center yesterday said they send and receive text messages every day — even during class — but couldn't be bothered to register for emergency texts, which could cost 10 cents per message or cost nothing with prepaid bulk text plans.

James Small, an economics senior, uses text messages for things like staying informed of friends' parties. But he barely reads his UH e-mails and doesn't expect to register for the texting program.

"No," Small said, "I don't think I would."

UH-Manoa junior Michelle Rose held her cell phone in her hand as she said, "The budget's kind of tight. All things cost extra."

The first test of the system occurred Feb. 20 when a test message was sent to 3,000 faculty and staff who already had registered by giving UH their cell phone numbers. They represent about 25 percent of the UH system's faculty and staff, a ratio that also follows the trend for Mainland universities, Lassner said.

Thirty people did not receive their test texts last week because they probably entered their phone numbers incorrectly, or changed or canceled their phone service, Lassner said.

He promised that faculty, staff and students will only receive two test texts per year. Any other texts would be sent only in emergencies like a gunman wandering the campus, Lassner said.

The first text test for students is scheduled for April, he said.

BAD EXPERIENCE

The texts are limited to 130 characters and are designed to close the information gap experienced in October when a 46-year-old man was arrested in Moili'ili after threatening to shoot 30 UH-Manoa students.

UH officials immediately issued a campuswide e-mail alert after the man was overheard making the threats on a city bus. But students who didn't read their e-mails continued to walk the 330-acre campus unaware of the manhunt.

It's that kind of situation that will get sophomore Chantrelle Waialae to register for the texting plan.

She has unlimited texts with her Mobi cell phone plan, but yesterday had bigger concerns than cost.

"It could save my life," she said.

The $100,000 per year texting program comes as UH officials continue to improve campus security and communications after fatal campus shootings at Northern Illinois University this month and at Virginia Tech last year — and after a series of dormitory crimes at UH-Manoa this school year.

PREVENTIVE MEASURES

UH officials also are taking other steps:

  • Considering an alarm system that would blast a tone distinctly different from the monthly statewide civil defense tests. The system would cost about $200,000 and is designed to alert faculty, staff and students and direct them to the UH Web site for more information. It could be installed and activated within a year, Lassner said.

  • Adding $1 million in improved lighting on the Manoa campus.

  • Asking for more than $900,000 from the Legislature to expand the Manoa campus' security force.

  • Continuing to repair broken dormitory locks and admonishing students who prop locked doors open and destroy bathroom locks to make it easier to move between their rooms and bathrooms — even after male intruders confronted female students as they showered.

  • Trying to recruit more community service officers to escort students after dark.

    Mike Nassir, a UH-Manoa physics instructor, applauded the improvements yesterday as he walked across campus with his cell phone in hand.

    But he acknowledged that efforts like the text messaging idea still leave plenty of gaps.

    He turns his cell phone off while lecturing to the 200 students in his freshman classes and would not even know if there were an emergency text.

    "I'm not a big texter anyway," Nassir said.

    If there were an emergency, Nassir hopes that one of his students will have signed up to receive the emergency messages.

    And some other student might be able to then check out UH's Web site for more information.

    "Hopefully," Nassir said, "one of them would speak up."

    Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.