Costs of the emergency boxes
$409 each
About 340 rooms on campus
$139,060 total
The university is spending approximately $140,000 on emergency call boxes on campus, a technology that neither Indiana University or Purdue University is using.
The boxes, which will call the University Police Department when the button is pushed, are being installed throughout campus, around 340 units total, according to Vice President of Information Technology Loren Malm. Each box costs $409.
Alan Hargrave said the Crisis Management Team considered the boxes for a few years before making the decision.
They decided this was a cost appropriate way to provide communication in an emergency, which he said is a key part of crisis situations.
“If a professor is having a particular problem whether it be a health emergency or a disruption,” he said, “they could hit the button and immediately have contact with University Police.”
About half of the boxes have been installed already, and the goal is to have all boxes installed by the end of the semester, Malm said. Any box already installed is currently functional.
IU and Purdue are both testing other types of new safety initiatives.
IU Superintendent of Public Safety Jerry Minger said they do not see a need for one-way phones, or any kind of phone in the classroom.
He said it would be easier for a student who needs help to just pull out their cell phone in an emergency.
“There are so many cell phones with our student body that if we added another phone into the classroom, we don’t feel like we would be adding a solution to the environment,” Minger said. “It would just be more redundancy and not even a good redundancy.”
IU is testing a safety app, Rave Guardian, which has a panic button to connect with police, allows police to send updates and even updates the user's “safety network” to concerns.
Minger called the technology on old phones “obsolete,” but acknowledged it is hard to keep up with technology.
“It’s like trying to hit a moving target,” he said. “Things are changing so fast in tech it's hard to settle on which one would be best and that would withstand the longevity.”
Purdue is piloting a program this academic year called the Allertus Allert Beacon. Thirty boxes were installed in large classrooms with more than 100 seats and when the university sends an emergency text, it is sent to the box as well.
“We alert them of what is happening on campus,” Director of Emergency Preparedness at Purdue, Ron Right, said. “Our goal is to provide as quick as possible warning to as many people as we can get to.”
Minger said IU is also considering installing Allertus Alert Beacons. The beacons cannot call police; they only provide information from the university.
The boxes at Ball State, on the other hand, allow for two-way communication.
University Police Chief James Duckham said the boxes will provide easier access to UPD.
“It’s easier access to calling us,” Duckham said. “It’s like any tool [with which] you can contact the police. It’s another opportunity for us to respond appropriately and promptly.”
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