2008 Woodie Awards
President updates campus on safety
Clayton Vertrees
Issue date: 4/18/08 Section: News
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Shortly after the tragedy at Virginia Tech, Dunn said Murray State officials began diagnosing security problems on campus.
"What we've tried to do in all of this is underscore the role and importance of emergency preparedness for the campus community," Dunn said. "Safety and security is always the top value. Students come to this University; parents and families entrust their students to us, and we take that role very seriously and very responsibly."
To further limit public access into residential colleges, Dunn said the University began requiring students to show their University ID's upon entry into the facilities.
Murray State extended the requirement of presenting University IDs to gain entry into residential colleges to include Facilities Management and Information Technology staff members working in residential colleges.
To make University IDs easier to read and students' pictures easier to identify, Dunn said the University incorporated larger type into the card's design and changed its background to a plain white.
For better communication between the University and students regarding potential safety threats, Dunn said IT staff created a new interface with the existing phone system, enabling all Voice Over Internet Protocol phones to receive simultaneous on-screen and spoken messages related to the specific nature of an emergency. IT staff and safety experts in Facilities Management partnered to incorporate communication with the residential colleges into the VoIP messages.
In a few weeks, Dunn said the University plans to finish installing an outdoor warning system which will broadcast spoken messages across campus about the specific nature of emergencies on hand.
Dunn said Murray State has begun training for new employees of the Murray Fire Department to assure familiarity with on-campus facilities.
In regard to future precautions, Dunn said Murray State plans to develop a phone system interface for text messages to mobile devices. This will allow students, parents, faculty and staff to receive text message alerts from the University should a crisis arise.
The University will enhance its Department of Public Safety to include the Office of Emergency Management.
During the presentation, Vice President for Student Affairs Don Robertson answered questions about efforts by the University in reducing potential threats of at-risk students on campus.
"What we are doing is not necessarily profiling students, but trying to find students that might be in crisis," Robertson said. "We are trying to reach out and be proactive and provide help and putting students in touch with mental health resources on campus."
Clayton Vertrees can be reached at james.vertrees@
murraystate.edu.
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