At Emory, everyone is empowered to play a role in creating a safe and prepared community. The Emory READY campaign, launching this fall, is designed to help strengthen each person’s ability to be aware, prepared and ready when on campus. And being “Emory READY” is about to get easier with the new Emory Safe app, now available in the Apple and Google app stores. The existing Live Safe app will no longer work starting Aug. 31.
“Emory READY will be a collective effort to drive greater preparedness and readiness across our campus community. By leveraging the resources, training, and programming on campus, this campaign will ask each of us to actively partner in making Emory better prepared — and the best, first step is downloading and being familiar with the Emory Safe app,” says Amir St. Clair, chief resilience officer at Emory.
Amanda Mohammed, program coordinator for the Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response (CEPAR), expands on the value and ease of the app. “The Emory Safe app provides access to emergency resources in one convenient location, making it readily accessible for users,” she says. “It’s important to explore the app and become familiar with the features it offers before an emergency arises.”
The Emory Safe app’s enhanced safety features include:
- Emergency contacts: Easily contact the Emory Police Department (EPD) or other responder agencies in case of emergency.
- Emergency guides: Readily access the Just-in-Time Guide to campus emergencies to review materials that can help you be prepared. This can be accessed even without Wi-Fi or cellular data.
- Friend walk: Send your location to a friend through email or SMS. Once the friend accepts the request, the user chooses a destination and the location is tracked and shared in real time. The friend does not need to have the app to participate.
- “I’m OK!”: Send your location and a message indicating that you’re okay to a recipient of your choosing.
- Safety notifications: Receive instant alerts and instructions when an on-campus emergency occurs.
- Real-time weather conditions: View current weather conditions reported from weather stations at multiple Emory campuses.
Emory University employees will also have additional support resources, such as easy access to the Faculty Staff Assistance Program (FSAP). Emory Healthcare employees can use the the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), which can be accessed via the FSAP webpage. Students will be able to access the Emory Be Well, Your Way hub via the app, which includes counseling services, student health, crisis resources and more.
How you can be Emory READY
In addition to having the app on your phone — and becoming familiar with it — there are additional steps the Emory community can take to be prepared, such as attending a preparedness training session, a life support skills training session and reviewing Emory’s Just-in-Time guide, which applies to both the Atlanta and Oxford campus.
“Emory’s mission statement focuses on serving humanity. That applies in many ways across our university, but learning these skills and helping those around you, or those in the broader community, is demonstrating service to others,” says Sam Shartar, senior director of operations for CEPAR. “You’ll be equipped to help someone or even save their life.”
Community members should also save the EPD emergency number (404-727-6111) on their phones. While 911 is always an option in an emergency, EPD can respond faster to incidents that occur on campus. And whether you’re on the Oxford or Atlanta campus, the EPD emergency number is the same.
“Emergencies are obviously not hypothetical situations,” says Shartar. “They do occur, and the better prepared you are, the more resilient you are. It’s important that people know what to do in advance, know where to find the resources, and how to take action based on where they are on campus.”
For example, students are encouraged to specifically consider safety procedures for their residence halls and the academic buildings they frequent. Be aware of each emergency exit as well as where to shelter in case of high winds, tornadoes or severe thunderstorms.
CEPAR works on preparedness and community outreach, and the CEPAR website has a wealth of information. From knowing where automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are located across campus to understanding how to control bleeding to detecting behavioral threats, the website is a priceless resource for building a stronger — and safer — community.
“Being aware of the preparedness resources available to you and being prepared to act in the event of an emergency strengthens resiliency amongst our community, making us ‘Emory READY,’” says Mohammed. “Being prepared is everyone’s responsibility.”
Safety resources at Emory
Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response
Atlanta and Oxford campus emergency phone: 404-727-6111
Atlanta campus non-emergency phone: 404-727-8005
Oxford campus non-emergency phone: 404-727-6115