The Department of Environmental Health and Safety is pushing for continued student awareness of emergency services on campus while making additions to current features.

The Wolf Alert system features, emergency text messaging, audible alerts throughout campus, an informational emergency Web site, as well as specific plans regarding the proper response to certain possible campus emergencies, according to David Rainer, associate vice chancellor for the Department of Environmental Health and Safety.

“We are installing three new speakers [to the audible alert system],” Rainer said. “One will target the brickyard, while one targets the Paul Derr Track, and one targets Centennial Campus.”

This system is audible throughout all of campus, he said, and features an alarm tone, an all-clear tone, as well as the ability for someone to project their voice through the network of speaker. The system will continue to undergo testing on the first Monday of every month, just as it did last year, he said.

According to Rainer, continued education with new students has been a priority.

“We spoke [about the system] with freshman and their parents through new student orientation,” Rainer said.

Campus Police also spoke to new students and handed out small pamphlets that explained the Wolf Alert system, he said. The pamphlets also showed students how to register online to receive text messages in case of emergency.

As of last April, Rainer said, 750 students had registered for the text-messaging service. The Department of Environmental Health and Safety has pushed for both new and returning students to continue registering, he said.

E-mails to students and advertisements on Wolfline buses and in campus publications have likely caused that number to grow, though no official statistics are available as of yet, he said.

According to Rainer, numbers are hard to come by for many reasons, including some issues with service providers.

Jamie Pritchett, a sophomore in animal science, signed up after receiving notification upon logging into MyPack Portal.

“[The notification was] sort of annoying,” he said. “It’s been coming up since I first signed in January, but I do think it’s a good service.”

Some schools have forced students to sign up for a similar service before allowing them to register for classes, Rainer said.

“We inform them of the service, but the decision is theirs,” he said. “We won’t force them to sign up.”

Emilea Burton, a sophomore in zoology, said the University should keep students aware of the service.

“I got bombarded with e-mails about the text message alerts,” said Emilea Burton, a sophomore in Zoology, “But I’m glad I was notified.”

Wolf Alert is a collaborative effort between Environmental Health and Safety, Campus Police, Student Affairs, Office of Information Technology, and News and Communications, who all meet regularly to make decisions and work out bugs, Rainer said.

“Wolf Alert is only one part of keeping our campus safe,” he said. “Campus safety is ensured by Wolf Alert, Campus Police, and students working together. Hopefully, students will make us aware of any problems. Wolf Alert is progressive.”