I think that the professors in class, RA’s in the dorms, and workers in auxillary businesses such as bookstores or dining areas should all be required to have a cell phone, provided by the school, turned on at all or during certain times of the day. That way they can be contacted and can then alert the students and other staff as to what is going on. These people should be required to go through training in what to do during any kind of emergency and how to deal with people in a panic situation. Having a texting plan is an absolutely ridiculous idea for a school that can have over 20,000 students, especially since cell phones are supposed to be off during class.

um, YES, colleges need more that text messages! it’s an insane solution. you brought up the first good point–that you’re not supposed to answer your phones in class. also, NOT EVERYONE HAS A CELL PHONE. and not everyone is signed up for a text message plan. it’s absolutely ridiculous.

i think they should have some sort of alarm that goes off outside and can be heard campus-wide. they do that with fire alarms…why can’t they do it if there might be a killer on the loose??