Building a safer community
Laura Morales (she/her) // Co-Editor-In-Chief
Eugene Lee (she/her) // Illustrator
CapU Safe Alert is the new official safety app launched by Capilano University to keep the community informed about emergencies, weather incidents, power outages and campus closures. According to the university’s announcement on September 3, the new app allows community members to report incidents, request a SafeWalk and get notifications for campus and student housing areas that matter to them. In an interview with the Courier, the Manager of Safety and Emergency Management Systems Jon Arason, along with the Manager of Security Technology and Access Darren Broder, shared additional details on the reason for this change, the key advantages of the new system and recommendations for a safer campus.
This new app, powered by AlertAware, is not to be confused with CapU Safe, the old app originally introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic that is scheduled to be phased out by the end of November. According to Broder, after reviewing the options used at other universities in the area, they found that AlertAware was the best option; not only for the features it offers, but also because it integrates seamlessly with Alertus, the emergency notification system already in use. The advantage of this integration is that important alerts will be delivered to the app and, “potentially to employee and student desktop computers that are in our computer labs and in the offices,” he explained.
Beyond receiving alerts, the app empowers users to actively participate in campus safety by allowing them to report incidents. This feature allows members of the community to submit photos and GPS coordinates for issues like tripping hazards, maintenance problems or wildlife sightings. Arason shared a successful example where a user reported a cracked sidewalk through the old app. The report was forwarded to facilities that same day and led to the repair of the sidewalks between the library and the birch building.
What happens after you report an incident? Say a student saw a bear on campus and used the report feature on CapU Safe Alert to take a picture and send the location of the sighting. All the reports submitted through the app go to the safety department inbox, which is monitored by multiple staff members—including on weekends—and collaborates with the security manager, parking advisor, contracted security guards and other departments to address the reports.
Another key feature of the new app are the various opt-in groups, which provide updates specific to their group members. For example, students with accessibility needs, campus neighbours or parents with children attending daycare at CapU are able to join a unique group that is geared to their needs. Arason commented on the importance of improving communication with the broader community; “The neighbors also look to us in an emergency,” he noted, “There are supplies for disaster response being stored on campus from the North Shore Emergency Management Office […] If there was a major earthquake, I would strongly suspect that people in the neighborhood would be looking to the university for assistance.”
The main takeaways from Arason and Broder to the CapU community are: 1) download the app; 2) tell your friends to download the app; 3) if there is an emergency always call 911 first; 4) if you have a safety concern make sure to report it through CapU Safe Alert.