University Launches Emergency Notification Network

The University of Maryland, College Park, has deployed a text-based network that enables campus Public Safety to notify the entire campus--thousands of faculty and 35,000 students--of a crisis, or send targeted messages for a routine incident.

The system also communicates with parents.

The university can notify the entire campus, or targeted areas both on and off campus in seconds using the Roam Secure Alert Network (RSAN) . The system is capable of reaching any text-enabled device including cell phones, pagers, e-mail, and Blackberry, as well as telephones and fax and other communication media. The system also provides two-way messaging capabilities. All messages are stored and presented in the web-based application via the AlertTracker or to the field via a mobile device, creating an easy to view alert summary and audit trail.

"The Roam Secure Alert Network gives the University of Maryland the ability to instantly communicate emergency information to our on and off campus constituents,” said Major Jay Gruber, University of Maryland Department of Public Safety. “We chose RSAN because of their experience managing large-scale text alerting systems over the past six years and for the easy enrollment process that was unique to the system. It is important to make enrollment easy on a college campus. We were also impressed with how quickly Roam Secure was able to make the system operational, taking only a few days to install the system, configure it to our needs, and train authorized personnel.”

Roam Secure supports more than 115 RSAN systems across the country at local, state and federal government agencies, schools, hospitals, airports, refineries and other key businesses for routine and emergency communication. The Roam Secure Information Exchange (RSIX) enables the University of Maryland to securely connect with other RSAN systems in five major metropolitan areas, including the seventeen jurisdictions in the National Capital Region, Philadelphia, San Francisco and local RSAN systems across the country in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Colorado and California. Each new RSAN system, including existing systems throughout Maryland, can join the growing national emergency information exchange and share private and public all hazards emergency information regionally, statewide and nationally.

“The University of Maryland has deployed a text-based, interoperable emergency alert system that serves the students, faculty, parents, campus security and greater University of Maryland community,” said David Drescher, CEO of Roam Secure. “They have further enhanced their communication capabilities and are better prepared to communicate with their constituents quickly, on all types of devices, as needed.”

For more information, visit: www.roamsecure.net.