TO: All employees
FR: Missy Brunetta, Director for Emergency Services/Associate Risk Manager, and David Chun, Chief Information Officer
We are pleased to announce an exciting partnership between the Office of Emergency Services and Information Technology. We are launching a new feature to our Emergency Notification System (ENS) that will allow notifications to be sent directly to desktops in the event of an emergency.
The new software is called Alertus and is widely used across California in public, private, and educational settings. Alertus allows Emergency Notifications to override the desktop screens of computers on the campus network and deliver an emergency alert. The desktop message will display for one to five minutes unless dismissed by the user.
All IT-managed Macs and PC’s on campus or connected via VPN will receive the software through a nightly software update. The Alertus software will be identified by a new yellow (for PC’s) or white icon (for Mac’s) in the notification area on your desktop. If you do not receive the software update by Friday, October 8, please contact the IT Help Desk or your GeoTeam Representative.
We will conduct testing of the new system during a campus wide test on October 21 for the Great ShakeOut. The Great ShakeOut is an annual earthquake preparedness drill which California and other U.S. states participate in.
If you have any questions about this new tool, please email emergency@sonoma.edu.