By SHANNON O. WELLS

 

In a discussion about campus safety protocols at the Oct. 12 Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Discrimination Advocacy Committee (EIADAC) meeting, Ella O’Rourke, Student Government Board executive member, said SGB is collaborating with the Office of Facilities Management to improve Emergency Medicine System (EMS) alert and panic button systems on campus. 

 

“We have two committee chairs right now that are actually working with Facilities and Pitt Police on the panic button system, and how to increase awareness for students and make sure it's accessible,” she said, noting that in the Cathedral of Learning, where Wi-Fi can be spotty, students might not get EMS alerts in a timely manner and “don’t really know about safety concerns on campus as they are happening.”

 

“I just wanted to make everyone aware that some of the Student Government Board members are working on that … and I would be more than happy to connect anyone who's interested in talking with them about (safety in labs) or anything else as well.”

“Does that mean when I'm not using the app? Are there terms of service where I can limit when and how it's used?” she asked. 

 

Committee Co-Chair Susan Graff acknowledged this was something to consider in the area of anti-discrimination and advocacy. “Is there a possibility to then have police or someone else use that app to locate people without them pushing the (panic) button, potentially, and what that means for privacy and safety?”

 

Another committee member said his user privacy statement says the PittSAFE app “does not collect personal data of any type by default. But some features, when enabled, may be modified to collect personal data and user information,” he said. “If you do the ‘I’m OK’ (safety selection), it will send your location … But it is more a matter of, you say, ‘Yes, please, tell them where I am.’”

 

Graff suggested sharing with student government that the app is “not like their mom tracking them on ‘Where's my iPhone’ all the time, and that it's really only to provide safety. I feel like that's important messaging, especially given (it’s) 2026.”

 

Miriam Meislik, media curator in the Archives & Special Collections, noted that in her workspaces at Hillman Library and on Thomas Boulevard, “our panic buttons are hidden, and only staff can see them.”

 

“They are, like, putty colored, so they look like they're part of the desk … (they look) like a doorbell, really, and it sits right at the edge of the desk,” she explained. “And that's how I hit it accidentally. I literally bumped it, and next thing you know there's a police officer coming up the elevator. I was impressed and embarrassed at the same time.”

 

Panic buttons in classrooms are “hidden” the same, Meislik noted. “It's just kind of off to the side so that we can get to it. But if a student needed it, they actually wouldn't know where it was. We'd have to tell them or show them.”

 

Committee Chair Bridget Keown, teaching associate professor in the Department of Gender and Science, clarified her understanding that the “blue light” app is intended for those needing some assistance or are uncomfortable in public, while the panic button is for more dire situations such as an active shooter, “kind of a much bigger deal.” 

 

“That is not to say they don't go to the same place, but especially in classrooms, the assumption is that the panic button (means) there are a significant number of people in danger. A blue light is (when) one person needs assistance,” she said. “I think it's the scale of the response.”

 

Keown added that, in meetings with Pitt Public Safety & Emergency Management and Campus Utilization, Planning and Safety Committee (CUPS) officials, issues of privacy also were discussed. 

 

“They were talking about privacy policies and security regarding surveillance on campus, how the information in surveillance cameras was being used, how it is stored and things like that,” she said. “We were told very adamantly that, first and foremost, Pitt Public Safety does not operate Flock (brand public surveillance) cameras. The city of Pittsburgh does not operate Flock cameras … 

 

While Pitt has its own cameras and the information is held for about 30 days … it is only used for police purposes. It can't be used for personnel matters, or for HR. And there does have to be a police procedural initiated before that footage can be used.”

 

Keown clarified that Pitt Public Safety is the “only entity on campus that has the right to install a camera,” noting that some have put their own cameras in labs and other spaces. “Those are not authorized. If you feel you need one, then contacting Public Safety would be the first step.”

 

She elaborated that it “sounds like communication between Pitt Public Safety and the (City of Pittsburgh) Police is improving, especially since the swatting (incident) that took place at Hillman a few years ago and the lack of coordination between these two entities … They do have better communication. Public Safety has access to the police scanners, so they know kind of what is going on.”

 

“They are not only monitoring their radio channels, but they are looking at other ways of coordinating with Pittsburgh Police to minimize activities like that.”

 

Regarding those who don't have cellphones on them all the time, “there are places that may not have service that departments have been given the authority to pay for their landlines, and a lot of them just don't,” Keown said. “If something should happen where a landline is your only option, what exactly are we supposed to do?” 

 

There also is discussion about installing mounted phones in public spaces that could be accessed, she added.

 

“Although there isn't really a concrete plan in place, I think to what Ella was bringing up earlier is also thinking about not just internet service, but the usefulness of landlines in a crisis would be something to think about.”

 

Shannon O. Wells is a writer for the University Times. Reach him at shannonw@pitt.edu.

 

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