Annual Test of BU Emergency Alert System Is Today
System provides crucial warnings when there’s an emergency or school closing
There will be a test of the BU Alert System on Friday, September 15, at 4 pm to ensure that the system—which sends information to the BU community in the event of an emergency—is working properly. Faculty, staff, and students are urged to immediately confirm receipt whenever they receive a BU Alert. Photo by ViewApart/iStock
Annual Test of BU Emergency Alert System Is Today
System provides crucial warnings when there’s an emergency or school closing
If you have a BU email address, expect to hear from the BU Emergency Alert System today, Friday, September 15. BU Alert, which sends information during emergencies to the BU community via email, text message, landline, or push notification via the Everbridge app, will be conducting its annual federally mandated test of the system at approximately 4 pm. The aim of the test is to ensure that the system is working properly. The test message will also be posted on the BU homepage, on BU Today, and on the BU Emergency Management website, as well as on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BUPolice.
The BU Alert System is designed to provide rapid and reliable mass communication to students, staff, and faculty in the event of an emergency, such as a crime incident, or a time-sensitive situation, such as a weather-related closing. This year, the University is implementing an enhancement to BU Alert that allows the community to confirm receipt of the message. Once you confirm the message it will stop sending to the other modalities.
Students wishing to update their information or add a cell phone number can do so by visiting the MyBU Student Portal and clicking the “Personal” tab to update “Address and Phone.”
A sample of the emails members of the BU community will receive Friday, September 15, at 4 pm alerting them of the test of the BU Alert system (left) and the email they’ll receive after they’ve acknowledged receipt of the message (right). Screenshots courtesy of Rene Fielding
Faculty and staff who want to add a cell phone number can do so by logging on to BU Works, clicking first on the “Employee Self-Service” tab, then selecting “Personal Information” to update “BU Alert Information.”
“It is essential that our community members keep their contact information up to date so they receive our notifications quickly and so they are aware of what is occurring on campus and can keep themselves safe,” says Rene Fielding, director of Emergency Management.
BU instituted the alert system in 2008 to expedite announcements pertaining to crimes, bad weather, and other instances of possible disruptions to University operations. The University rolled out a new BU Alert last May, complete with a new app that allows for quicker and more accessible communications to students, faculty, and staff. People are urged to read the message when it is received, to alert other people, and to carefully follow the instructions given with the message.
“During an emergency situation, seconds count,” Fielding says. “Our main objective is to be able to notify the entire BU community with information as soon as we have it, and to ensure everyone’s safety by keeping them informed of what and where something is occurring on campus.”
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