This letter to the editor was written in response to a Sept. 30 Minnesota Daily opinion column.
In an opinion piece published Sept. 30, the writer questioned why the University of Minnesota sends certain SAFE-U notifications and speculated about the rationale. In fact, the University openly shares information that explains the what, why and when about SAFE-U notifications.
The University is required by federal law to notify the campus community when it becomes aware of specific emergency or dangerous situations that pose a serious or ongoing threat to the health and safety of campus. Under the Clery Act, incidents that occur on and immediately adjacent to campus property — an area informally known as the University’s Clery geography — must be shared publicly with every student, faculty and staff member on campus. The University complies with its legal requirements by issuing SAFE-U notifications.
Students, faculty and staff are automatically enrolled in SAFE-U notifications through their University email. Consistent with federal law, recipients cannot opt-out of these emails. However, should they choose, anyone can opt-out of phone or text message alerts through their MyU portal, under the My Info tab. Anyone else who may be interested in receiving SAFE-U notifications can sign up through the Everbridge app, where they can choose whether to receive calls and text messages as well.
The University is committed to implementing and enhancing all aspects of our approach to public safety to better serve our community, including how we communicate about safety. All students are encouraged to learn more about our range of safety measures, and those looking for more can refer to the Department of Public Safety Safety Notifications page and the Safe Campus website.
To be clear, federal law requires the University to make members of our community aware of certain types of crime when we become aware of them, and for good reason. Greater awareness and information helps us all stay safe.
This letter was submitted by Daniel Alberts. Alberts is the director of Clery compliance for the University of Minnesota, overseeing all aspects of the University’s compliance with the federal Clery Act.
This letter has been lightly edited for style and clarity.
Enn Arre
Oct 12, 2022 at 4:12 pm
Thank you for writing this! I had commented on the original piece of the law but did not have the time or energy to write more than the comment. Thanks again for helping people understand there is ALWAYS something behind what they see on the surface.