A Facebook group could be the next step for University police to inform students of emergency situations.
UTPD Chief Robert Dahlstrom said the department will consider any means of distributing emergency information to the campus community, including social networking sites. Major Jay Gruber of the University of Maryland-College Park Department of Public Safety created a Facebook group for students at the Maryland university to utilize. Dahlstrom said he thinks it might be a good idea for UT to consider.
"I'm all for any way you can put any kind of information like that out," Dahlstrom said, adding that it is important for the campus community to be aware of everything that is happening around the area, especially in the case of an emergency.
Dahlstrom said one concern would be if students began posting to the Facebook group before informing the police of any situation they had found on campus, especially when students or faculty could be injured and require help.
Paul Dillon, spokesman for the University of Maryland-College Park Department of Public Safety, said the university's Facebook group is used as a supplement to what is already in place around the campus, including a siren system and an annual Emergency Awareness Week.
"It's just another tool in the arsenal to get information out," Dillon said.
Dillon said the universitie's Facebook group is still in its infancy stages and he hopes its membership will increase as more students learn about the group. He said it has not yet seen any significant results, but suggests the program to other universities.
"One good thing about it is it's cheap; it doesn't cost anything, so from that perspective it's great," he said.
Dillon said that because the group is voluntary, he has not heard any negative feedback from participating students.
Government senior Ryan Yep said he supports UTPD creating a Facebook group for emergency awareness. He said people should be smart enough to not put anything incriminating on their Facebook pages and should not have a problem with the police department creating the group.
"What you put on there is your responsibility," Yep said. "When it comes to your own safety, it's a big deal."
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