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Register your phone for campus alerts

Aug. 22, 2010

KALAMAZOO--Registration is under way for a new Western Michigan University emergency communication service designed to place thousands of phone calls to students, faculty and staff within minutes of an extreme campus emergency.

Register your phone now for campus alerts. WMU Alert, part of a Reverse 911 phone system purchased by the University, was launched at the beginning of August and already has thousands of subscribers. All members of the campus community are encouraged to register a phone number to receive notification of emergency situations.

Step 1: Register your phone

You may register your cell, office or home phone number, whatever phone you are most likely to answer, but you may only register one number.

Login to GoWMU and click the alert logo in the WMU Campus Alert channel on your home tab. The only information required is your phone number. You can and should change your registered number as often as needed. New and updated numbers are uploaded to the system once a week.

Step 2: Program your phone

Enter the following In your phone's contacts, address book or phone book.

  • Name: WMU Alert
  • Number: (269) 387-0911

Calls received from WMU Alert will reflect a caller ID number of (269) 387-0911, but since you may only receive very infrequent tests, you may not remember that 387-0911 indicates an extreme campus emergency. That is why it's important to program your phone to display "WMU Alert."

Your voice activates the message

When you receive a call from WMU Alert, answer the phone—your voice activates the message. If you say nothing, the system will move on to the next number; it will not leave a message.

If you call (269) 387-0911, you will receive a message that you've reached a nonworking number, because that number is only for outgoing calls. You can get campus status updates by calling the Emergency Information Line at (269) 387-1001.

Except for very infrequent tests of the system, WMU Alert will only be used for extreme campus emergencies.

In an extreme emergency, the system's mass call option will be activated, sending voice messages to all registered numbers. The system is capable of making approximately 4,000 calls per minute.

Phone numbers registered for WMU Alert will not be used by the University for any other purpose and will not appear in your standard contact information, unless you also enter the number there. You need to update your standard contact information separately through GoWMU.

No text messages

Text messaging is not part of WMU Alert. Text messaging is not appropriate for the extreme emergency situations for which WMU Alert is designed, because phone service providers give text messages a lower delivery priority than voice messages.

Go to the WMU home page for updates

In any campus emergency, additional information will be posted on the WMU home page at wmich.edu and in WMU News at wmich.edu/news. You can also get campus status updates by calling the Emergency Information Line at (269) 387-1001.

If you have questions about WMU Alert, contact Cam Vossen, emergency management administrator, at cam.vossen@wmich.edu or (269) 387-0678.

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Media contact: Thom Myers, (269) 387-8400, thom.myers@wmich.edu

WMU News
Office of University Relations
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5433 USA
(269) 387-8400
www.wmich.edu/news