University of Tennessee debuts new campus safety app
Knoxville TN November 7 2018 A new mobile application rolled out by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville will give students, faculty and staff a new way to report safety concerns to campus officials through a few simple clicks.
The LiveSafe app, introduced to the campus community through an email on Monday morning, connects individuals to a variety of resources such as the UT Police Department, the Office of Title IX, the Student Health Center, the Counseling Center and Facilities Services through their smartphones.
App users can alert campus authorities to most any concern they come across, from broken lights to safety issues to suspicious activities and worries about a friend, according to a statement from the university.
Through the app, users can exchange text messages, pictures, videos and audio with campus personnel, the statement noted.
The LiveSafe app replaces the Guardian app that the campus has relied on – an app that Troy Lane, associate vice chancellor for public safety and chief of police, said “had very limited functionality.”
“And, frankly, we just didn’t get much out of it,” Lane said.
The police chief has repeatedly heard from students that they want a mobile app to use for communication about safety.
“This really checked that box for us,” Lane said.
The app funnels students to one hub where they can report their concerns, cutting out a lot of confusion that may steer them in the wrong direction.
Lane said he’s heard countless times about an individual who wanted to report something but who didn’t know who to report it to or how to go about reporting it.
“Which may sound simplistic, but I’ve heard it too many times to dismiss it,” he said. “And this just takes that guesswork out of the equation.”
Lane dubs himself “old-fashioned” as he prefers for people on campus to pick up a phone and call 911 or UT Police, but he knows that’ not how college students readily communicate in the digital age as they often opt for apps or texting.
“We’ve got to meet them where they are,” Lane said.
Among the most popular features of the app, he emphasized, is a “SafeWalk” capability in which users can select a contact in their phone and have them do a virtual walk-along with them, so that person follows their route and location as they head to their destination.
UT will continue promoting the app, Lane stressed, as it will take more than a one-time message to students to spread awareness across the entire campus.
Along with an email from Lane to the campus on Monday and another email from the UT System, the university created graphics for its digital signage on campus, updated its public safety website. It plans to disperse handouts in the future on campus as well as continue firing out emails and plugging the app on social media.
While Lane is confident UT is a safe environment for students, staff and faculty, he understands the institution will never reach a point where it can establish that it’s safe enough. Part of his department’s job entails constantly assess new technology and new training while observing the emergencies that unfold at other places.
“I don’t simply want to be reactive,” he said. “I’d rather have things in place that allow us to be proactive.”
Sophomore Simphany Gillard, who is majoring in therapeutic recreation, had not heard about the LiveSafe app before Monday afternoon but was optimistic that it would reinforce safety on campus.
Along with providing students one place to access safety resources, the app fits in seamlessly with how she and her peers communicate, she said.
“Since we’re college students, we use our phones so much,” Gillard said. “It’s a way for us to have something we’ll actually use.”
Gillard mostly feels safe on campus, but takes precautions for the sake of safety, including traveling with a group of people as much as possible and often relying on campus transportation so that she doesn’t have to walk.
She plans to use the app now that she knows about it.
But David Slater, a junior majoring in psychology, isn’t as easily sold on the technology.
Not everyone’s first reaction when confronted by a safety issue would be to open an app nor are students always inclined to get authorities involved, he said.
Slater feels safe on campus – but largely because of his strong build.
“I can hold my weight,” he said.
Will he use LiveSafe? Probably not.
