About six months after the University introduced the Emergency Text Messaging System, it will test the service for the first time Friday.
A text message will be sent to the service’s registered users between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. The message will read, “This is a test of the LSU Emergency Text Messaging System. No emergency exists. This is a test.”
This system was implemented in May, about one month after the on-campus shootings at Virginia Tech University. Since then, about 12,500 LSU students have subscribed to the service. Sheri Thompson, Information Technology planning and communications officer, said about 4,000 more students signed up for the alerts after Chandrasekhar Reddy Komma and Kiran Kumar Allam, both doctoral students, were shot at the Edward Gay Apartments in December. Megan Johnson, biology senior, said she has not signed up for the text alerts. She said she has not heard much about the system, but she said the University should have tested the alerts earlier. “They should have worked out the kinks before something happened, since it’s a new system,” she said. Sarah Schaff, animal, dairy and poultry freshman, said she signed up for the text alerts when she enrolled at the University because it gave her a sense of security. Schaff said she hopes the test is successful because she was concerned when she did not receive an alert after Komma and Allam were shot. “I hope it goes through,” she said. “I wish they had done it sooner, but it’s better now than never.” Thompson said further testing throughout the semester will depend on the initial assessment. “We recognize the importance of regularly scheduled tests to ensure the service functions in the event of a real emergency, but plan to test no more than once a semester,” Thompson said. Students, faculty and staff who want to receive the test alert Friday have to subscribe prior to 5 p.m. today. A subscription can be obtained by logging into their PAWS accounts, clicking “Campus Community” in the navigation bar and selecting “Emergency Text Message.” The service is free, but charges from individual cell phone carriers may apply for text messages.
—-Contact Angelle Barbazon at [email protected]