Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts is Â鶹´«Ã½'s emergency alert and notification system capable of delivering messages to Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty, staff and students email addresses, land lines and cell phones. These messages include campus emergencies as well as campus and inclement weather and closures as they pertain to the entire campus community.
Alerts will be sent by either University Relations or Old Dominion Police, depending on the nature of the situation. Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts is a free service and will not charge you a subscriber's fee from Â鶹´«Ã½. Standard text message and phone rates from your phone provider will apply.
How it Works
Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts allows you to list up to six contact methods. During an urgent situation, the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts system will begin cycling through your points of contact to deliver the alert, starting with the first available. When you receive the message, it is very important that you confirm receipt when prompted. If no confirmation is received, Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts will continue cycling through your points of contact.
It will be used only for emergency notifications (see FAQ: How will I know it's an Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert?) which can be sent via text message (SMS), phone numbers, or non-Â鶹´«Ã½ e-mail. You do not need to provide your Â鶹´«Ã½ e-mail address, as the university will continue to broadcast alert messages to Old Dominion e-mail addresses.
When Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts May Be Activated
Near Term Action Required
There is a required near term action on the part of the University community, including but not limited to:
- Sheltering from a storm;
- Cancelling classes;
- A dangerous situation on campus that could impinge on personal safety either locally or generally, such as a chemical spill, bomb threat, or dangerous person.
Ongoing Threat
Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts will also be used when the Old Dominion Police Department or senior administration determines that there is an ongoing threat to the University community by the presence of certain persons or when the timeliness of the notice may assist in locating an offender.
To best reach the University student community during incidents and emergencies, all Â鶹´«Ã½ students are automatically registered with their provided primary cell phone in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts system. Students can manage their account and add additional numbers to receive notifications using the "Update Me Now" button on the My Information panel in the .
University faculty and staff can opt-in to receive alerts via . Using your MIDAS ID and password to login, you can register the contact methods that are best for you. Users may select up to six different methods of contact from Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts (see FAQ: ).
Each individual subscriber MUST update their contact information. You are responsible for making all updates or changes to your contact information. Â鶹´«Ã½ does not update your information from other sources.
Â鶹´«Ã½ students who wish to opt out of Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts (SMS text and voice notifications) can do so via the "Update Me Now" button on the My Information panel in the Portal.
Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty and staff can unsubscribe from Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert SMS text and voice notifications by simply texting the word STOP or UNSUBSCRIBE (do not include signature or punctuation) to the last Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert message received (Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts can come from any of the following numbers: 226787, 67283, 77295, 78015, 81437).
You may also follow these instructions:
- Click on the "Manage your Account" link.
- Log into the system with your MIDAS credentials.
- Click the DELETE (red) button beside your cell phone number.
- Follow the confirmation prompts.
Note: Â鶹´«Ã½ students, faculty, and staff will continue to receive Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert emails until your email account is deactivated (i.e., when you officially leave the University).
Your subscription may be deactivated if you:
- Leave the University
- Your Â鶹´«Ã½ affiliation changes and you are no longer a registered student
- It has been determined (after due process) that you have intentionally abused or harmed the system
You will not be notified when your subscription is deactivated because of a change in affiliation.
To best reach the University student community during incidents and emergencies, all Â鶹´«Ã½ students are automatically registered with their provided primary cell phone in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts system. Students can manage their account and add additional numbers to receive notifications using the "Update Me Now" button on the My Information panel in the .
University faculty and staff can opt-in to receive alerts via . Using your MIDAS ID and password to login, you can register the contact methods that are best for you. Users may select up to six different methods of contact from Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts (see FAQ: ).
Each individual subscriber MUST update their contact information. You are responsible for making all updates or changes to your contact information. Â鶹´«Ã½ does not update your information from other sources.
Â鶹´«Ã½ students who wish to opt out of Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts (SMS text and voice notifications) can do so via the "Update Me Now" button on the My Information panel in the Portal.
Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty and staff can unsubscribe from Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert SMS text and voice notifications by simply texting the word STOP or UNSUBSCRIBE (do not include signature or punctuation) to the last Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert message received (Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts can come from any of the following numbers: 226787, 67283, 77295, 78015, 81437).
You may also follow these instructions:
- Click on the "Manage your Account" link.
- Log into the system with your MIDAS credentials.
- Click the DELETE (red) button beside your cell phone number.
- Follow the confirmation prompts.
Note: Â鶹´«Ã½ students, faculty, and staff will continue to receive Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert emails until your email account is deactivated (i.e., when you officially leave the University).
Your subscription may be deactivated if you:
- Leave the University
- Your Â鶹´«Ã½ affiliation changes and you are no longer a registered student
- It has been determined (after due process) that you have intentionally abused or harmed the system
You will not be notified when your subscription is deactivated because of a change in affiliation.
Frequently Asked Questions
In an effort to more effectively communicate with the University student community during incidents and emergencies, all student primary cell phone numbers are automatically enrolled in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts system. In the interest of facilitating safety communications during incidents and emergencies, students are strongly encouraged to keep their primary cell phone number in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts system. Â鶹´«Ã½ students who wish to opt out of Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts (SMS text and voice notifications) must do so by accessing the "Update Me Now" button on the My Information panel via the . You will continue to receive email notifications at your Â鶹´«Ã½ email address; you will have access to the Old Dominion weather/emergency telephone hotline; and you will be able to find the emergency information at the Old Dominion homepage.
For Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty and staff, if you decide not to sign up, you will not receive notification via your preferred contact methods. You will continue to receive email notifications at your Â鶹´«Ã½ email address; you will have access to the Old Dominion weather/emergency telephone hotline; and you will be able to find the emergency information at the Old Dominion homepage.
If it is an Â鶹´«Ã½ Alert the sender will have the following information:
| Method | Sender Information |
|---|---|
| Text Message |
226787 Phone confirmation code: 22911 |
| Phone Call | 757-683-3001 |
| odualert@odu.edu |
The University plans to test the system on a regular basis, at least once per semester. The campus community will be notified in advance of such tests.
If the message is a test of the system, it will be delivered with the subject line "TEST: Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts." Any message that does not include the word "test" is an urgent message. Urgent messages will carry subject lines including, but not limited to, "Safety Timely Warning," "Emergency Notification" or "Weather Alert."
Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts is intended to communicate urgent information to students, faculty, and staff on campus during an emergency. For that reason, it is very important that you carefully consider your points of contact.
Remember that the system cycles through your points of contact until receipt is confirmed. If, for example, you list your first point of contact as your cell phone and your second and third as your parents' numbers, you risk not receiving the message in a timely manner or at all if you are unavailable on your cell phone at the time of an emergency. If you still wish to include parents, spouses, or others among your points of contact, we strongly suggest listing yourself as the first several points of contact.
Â鶹´«Ã½ student subscribers must update their contact information via the "My Information Form" in the .
Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty and staff subscribers must update their contact information via the . You are responsible for making all updates or changes to your contact information. Â鶹´«Ã½ does not update your information automatically.
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Old Dominion will not verify the accuracy of the data you enter. If the contact data that you enter is not accurate, it will remain inaccurate until it is changed by you. In cases where individuals have entered incorrect telephone numbers and the actual telephone number holder contacts Â鶹´«Ã½ and can verify they are the holder of the number, the number will be deleted and you will be notified via your Â鶹´«Ã½ email address that the incorrect information has been removed.
For Â鶹´«Ã½ students, the primary cell phone number can be updated using the "My Information Form" in the . This will update that primary number in Banner as well as in Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts, but no other University systems will be updated. Additional contact numbers provided for Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts via the "My Information Form" are only used in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts system.
For Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty and staff, the contact information you provide will not be used to update any other Â鶹´«Ã½ systems.
The contact data you enter will be provided to a third party for purposes of notifying you in the event of an emergency. No identifying information (such as your name, etc.) will be provided to the third party vendor.
The third party vendor has agreed that they have no right to use your contact information for any purpose other than notifying you via Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts. They do not have rights to sell, disclose or trade your contact information. When required by law (e.g.. in compliance with a subpoena or court order) your contact information may be disclosed.
Only the individuals employed by Old Dominion who must use this information to administer and manage Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts will have access to your contact information
If, for any reason, a decision is made to use the Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts Automated Notification System for anything other than an emergency, you will be notified and given the opportunity to subscribe to the other service before your contact information is used for dissemination of non-emergency information through Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts.
Click the link beside the locality where you live/commute from to register for alerts issued for that area.
- Chesapeake:
- Gloucester:
- Hampton:
- James City:
- Newport News:
- Norfolk:
- Poquoson:
- Portsmouth:
- Southampton: https://
- Surry:
- Virginia Beach:
- York County:
Privacy Notice: The contact data you enter will be provided to a third party for purposes of notifying you in the event of an emergency. No identifying information (such as your name, etc.) will be provided to the third party vendor. The third party vendor has agreed that they have no right to use your contact information for any purpose other than notifying you via Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts. They do not have rights to sell, disclose or trade your contact information. When required by law (e.g.. in compliance with a subpoena or court order) your contact information may be disclosed. Only individuals employed by Â鶹´«Ã½ who must use this information to administer and manage Â鶹´«Ã½ Alerts will have access to your contact information.