Nearly everyone was caught off guard by last spring’s armed robbery at Morrison Residence Hall. From South Building to the victims’ third-floor suite, many were left wondering what took so long to notify campus in an official capacity. Administrators, long wary of “crying wolf” by flooding students with alerts, were stunned by the outcry.
By semester’s end, they could all agree on one point: students wanted more. They got it Thursday — and so did UNC. The University built a third emergency response mechanism into Alert Carolina that will notify students of incidents that don’t pose an immediate threat but nonetheless draw interest from the community.
The “informational message” will include a campuswide email and posting to the Alert Carolina website. This approach strikes a good balance, as it keeps students abreast of violent crimes (and major utility disruptions under repair) while showing restraint. Most importantly, it gives students a clear idea of what to expect from Alert Carolina.
In calling for a review in April, Chancellor Holden Thorp noted that the incident was isolated to the students involved. He even went so far as to say that the sirens would have been inaudible inside Morrison.
That didn’t matter to students, whose frustration and distrust showed just how misunderstood Alert Carolina was. Many students have continued to disapprove of the policy to send text messages in the event of a tornado watch, for instance. Their dismay might dissipate if they knew that a tornado sighting would merit a sounding of the Alert Carolina sirens.
The University took the blame for the miscommunication and students’ muddled expectations. Now that UNC has met them halfway, students have only themselves to blame for any future confusion.
That’s not to say there won’t be room for criticism in the future. As the robbery showed, no emergency policy can account for every danger and its particular circumstances. Until that event comes, however, students can thank UNC for responding to their concerns — and they can familiarize themselves with Alert Carolina.
