Universities Roll Out Custom Mobile Safety Apps
Several universities in the US and Canada are turning to custom mobile safety apps to enhance security and safety on campus.
Red River College, the University of British Columbia, Okanagan, Georgian College, Centennial College and the University of Florida have each partnered with developer AppArmor to create safety apps customized for their campuses. The AppArmor platform provides smartphone users with "instant access to their campus's safety resources in order to help raise awareness of those services and improve emergency responses in a crisis," according to the company.
Features of the platform include:
- Campus Police resources;
- Unlimited mass notifications;
- Real-time chat with dispatch;
- Geolocation tracking features;
- Interactive crime mapping;
- Offline ready emergency plans; and
- Student support resources.
The University of Florida's implementation of AppArmor took just under two months, reported David Sinkinson, AppArmor co-founder, in a press release. "Our customization technology and the amazing team at the UFPD helped take this project from idea to completion in less than 60 days."
"The new application, Gator Safe, has all of the requested features at a fraction of the cost of the application the university was previously using," said Edward Posey, administrative coordinator for the University of Florida Police Department, in a statement. "I can't think of any other company that has been as easy and beneficial to work with."
About the Author
Rhea Kelly is editor in chief for Campus Technology, THE Journal, and Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].