Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eCampus News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Civil liberties groups question anonymous reporting tool

Officials said about half of reports are anonymous.

A “see something, say something” approach to reporting on-campus hazing, bullying, cheating, or suspicious behavior at Virginia colleges has some civil libertarians questioning a technology that higher-education officials insist is necessary to comply with a state law.

Twenty-five colleges throughout Virginia use a web-based incident reporting program made by a Nebraska-based company called Awareity, which markets its Threat Assessment, Incident Management, and Prevention Services (TIPS) system as a way for campus decision makers to prevent security compromises, sniff out plagiarism, and even discover broken streetlamps, among other uses.

Students who submit an Awareity report, however, don’t have to attach their names or contact information to the online submission form. Officials at schools that use the reporting system said it has not yet been used as a tool for a student with a personal vendetta against a classmate, but higher-education observers said the option for anonymity leaves open the possibility.…Read More

Virginia Tech appeals fines from 2007 shooting rampage

According to CNN, Virginia Tech is appealing the $55,000 it was fined by the federal government for failing to provide a timely warning about a shooter on the loose in 2007, the Virginia attorney general said Wednesday.

“The relatively small monetary penalty is not the reason for this appeal. The university has already expended millions as a result of the tragedy,” Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli said in a statement. “The main purpose of the appeal is to compel the DOE (Department of Education) to treat Virginia Tech fairly and to apply a very poorly defined and subjectively applied federal law consistently and correctly.”

Click here for the full story…Read More

Let cops carry the guns

Police GunOne thing that still surprises me is the number of states willing to allow college and university students to carry concealed weapons on campus. More than 30 years in law enforcement has taught me that any guns on campus…

One thing that still surprises me is the number of states willing to allow college and university students to carry concealed weapons on campus. The laws are changing fast, but as of today, 25 states prohibit guns on campus.

But 23 leave it up to the campus administration to decide. Georgia allows students with a permit to keep a concealed weapon in their cars on campus. And students with a permit in Utah can carry concealed handguns.…Read More

More on preparing for a potential campus lockdown

cops_dellsIn my last higher-education blog, I wrote about planning for how and when to lockdown a campus. Once the task force is in place and working, it’s time to…

In my last higher-education blog, I wrote about planning for how and when to lockdown a campus and the first step of creating a task force to plan for potential problems such as a natural disasters, chemical spills, and a gunman on campus.

Once the task force is in place and working, it’s time to talk with an experienced security systems integrator about helping with a campus risk assessment. This is a chance to look at the strengths and weaknesses of your system in academic buildings, dormitories, parking lots, power plants, and other facilities that impact day-to-day campus functions. The integrator may recommend changes such as adding or moving cameras, increasing lighting, or modifying landscaping.…Read More

Hotline goes 21st century

PhoneHotlineI applaud the state of Missouri for taking one of my favorite ideas for deterring campus crime and violence…

I applaud the state of Missouri for taking one of my favorite ideas for deterring campus crime and violence–an anonymous hotline–and moving the concept into the 21st Century.

The state‘s Department of Public Safety recently posted a page on its web site known as “Report It!” As with the hotline, created in 2001, Report It! is intended for use by students, parents and teachers to anonymously report fights, weapons on campus, thefts, and bullying.…Read More

Use summer to upgrade campus lockdown procedures

chained_doorSummer is a good time for a college or university administration to review its emergency/crisis plans. Your first step in creating or upgrading a plan should be…

As we tend to slow down a little for summer, this is a good time for a college or university administration to review its emergency/crisis plans to make sure it is still up to meeting the challenges it may face.

Any number of events–a gunman on the grounds, a chemical spill, or violent weather–might lead to the difficult decision to call for a campus lockdown. Students, faculty, staff and the surrounding community will scrutinize that decision. But it is one that may very well save lives.…Read More

Don’t take chances with information

textingWhile Twitter delivers quick messages, mass notification systems have several key advantages that make them invaluable to school administrators in an emergency…

Twitter, which started as a way for friends and family to share quick 140-character messages, has gone mainstream. So much so, I’ve even heard suggestions that school districts consider using it as a means to notify parents and students of emergency situations on campus.

It’s an interesting idea. After all, Twitter is free and can reach hundreds, even thousands of followers in seconds. It can reach people by their smartphones, laptops, or desktop computers.…Read More

Focus on higher education security

Rotunda in SunlightThe recent death of a University of Virginia student and the arrest of her former boyfriend for suspected murder once again casts a shadow over the safety of our nation’s colleges.

The high level of media attention paid to this case and other events gives us a sense that campuses are out of control. In reality, our college and university campuses are safe places.

But administrators could do a better job in some areas……Read More

New system combines classroom audio, emergency alert

A new system could help campuses respond to emergencies much quicker.
A new system could help campuses respond to emergencies much quicker.

A new classroom product that combines sound amplification, lecture capture, and emergency alert capabilities in a single system could have a big impact on the safety of K-12 and higher-education classrooms.

The Safe Security system, from Panasonic and Audio Enhancement, features a button on a microphone worn around the instructor’s neck that, when pressed, sends a silent alarm to a school’s central offices and to administrators. Once alerted, school leaders have access to a live video feed courtesy of a networked camera inside the classroom, as well as to the audio feed captured on the microphone, and they can immediately assess what type of emergency is occurring in the classroom.

Jeff Anderson, president of Audio Enhancement, said many teachers wear wireless microphones around their necks as part of standard classroom audio systems, and incorporating a built-in security alert system was a logical next step.…Read More

How to avoid accidental data breaches

Universities house a large amount of personal student and employee data.
Universities present particular challenges in securing sensitive information.

College campuses are centers for learning and exploration, where students and faculty develop, exchange, and trade information. More than most other organizations, colleges and universities are in a continuous state of information sharing and data creation, and they rely heavily on the ability to seamlessly share, store, and protect that information within their communities and among their partners.

What’s more, life on a campus is always in flux. Students and faculty come and go, and their need to access certain information, not to mention physical campus locations such as dormitories and labs, is fluid.

As a result, the university setting causes big headaches for chief information officers and other technology professionals who are charged with securing the data that reside on a university’s computer systems—everything from proprietary research to students’ financial and personal data.…Read More