New emergency notification system for UI

To Members of the University of Iowa Community,

On Sept. 1 we implemented a new emergency notification system at UI called Hawk Alert.

The Hawk Alert System will be used to notify the campus community of threats to physical safety in emergency situations such as a tornado, violence, a hazardous material incident, etc.

Hawk Alert allows UI administrators to send recorded or electronic emergency messages ("Hawk Alerts") to the cell phone numbers, work phone numbers, home phone numbers, and e-mail addresses of UI students, faculty, and staff, using contact information from the University's Enterprise Directory (updated via ISIS or Employee Self Service). We expect the system will be able to notify people within 15 minutes.

You don't need to sign up to receive Hawk Alerts: The system automatically includes all current students, faculty, and staff, based on their presence in the Enterprise Directory. However, to ensure that you receive emergency notifications in the fastest way possible, you should check that your contact information is up to date in ISIS or Employee Self Service, and you should input your cell phone number to make sure a Hawk Alert reaches you in the event that you're away from your e-mail or landline phones during an emergency.

In conjunction with the Hawk Alert System, the Department of Public Safety has installed a series of notification towers equipped with sirens and voice alert systems that also will help warn those on campus in the event of an emergency.

Please take a few moments to read the Hawk Alert press release (http://news-releases.uiowa.edu/2007/august/082807hawk_alert.html). Answers to questions you may have -- including questions about notification by cell phone -- are found in a list of FAQs on the Hawk Alert Web site (http://hawkalert.uiowa.edu/).

Steve Fleagle, Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Chuck Green, Assistant Vice President and Director, Department of Public Safety