Northern Illinois University
Department of Police and Public Safety

There are three categories of NIU Safety Notifications to inform you of important information and enhance personal safety:

• NIU Alerts
• Safety Warnings
• Community Awareness Messages

NIU Alerts

An NIU Alert is a notification that is initiated upon confirmation that an emergency is currently occurring on or imminently threatening the health or safety of people on campus. The intent of an NIU Alert is to notify as many people as possible, as rapidly as possible, of a dangerous situation with instructions and follow-up information as needed. Depending on the emergency, an NIU Alert may be limited to the location of the emergency on campus, such as a hazardous material spill or a small fire. NIU publishes an Emergency Response Guide for a quick reference guide in emergency situations.

NIU Alert Example: Police Emergency at (on campus location). Remain indoors, seek immediate indoor shelter and deny entry (lockdown) now!

An NIU Alert may be delivered by the following methods of distribution:

• Text message and/or phone call to students and employees -- texts will come from 23-7233 (BE SAFE)
• AlertUs desktop notification to employee workstations
• Message broadcast via fire panels/loud speakers in campus buildings
• Push notification via NIU Safe app
• Message on the NIU Home Page
• Information posted on the Current Safety Notifications web page
• Email sent to all niu.edu email addresses
• NIU Police and Public Safety on Facebook
• @NIUPolice on Twitter

Safety Warnings

An NIU Safety Warning is a notification that is initiated when a Clery crime (listed below) has occurred within the NIU Police patrol area and is considered by NIU Police to represent a serious or continuing threat to the campus community. NIU Safety Warnings will be updated with additional information as it becomes available.

The intent of an NIU Safety Warning is to provide the timely information necessary to allow people to protect themselves and aid in the prevention of similar crimes.

The following crimes are considered for an NIU Safety Warning in accordance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act: Homicide; manslaughter; sexual offenses (rape, fondling, incest, stautory rape); robbery; aggravated assault; burglary; motor vehicle theft; arson; violations of weapons, drug abuse and liquor laws; dating violence; domestic violence; stalking and hate crimes (any crime listed above as well as larceny-theft, simple assault, intimidation, destruction/vandalism of property motiviated by bias).

An NIU Safety Warning may be delivered by the following methods of distribution:

• Push notification via NIU Safe app
• Information posted on the Current Safety Notifications web page
• Email to students and employees
• NIU Police and Public Safety on Facebook
• @NIUPolice on Twitter

Community Awareness Messages

A Community Awareness Message is a notification that is initiated to disseminate information about important topics that are in the interest of the well-being of the community. The intent of a Community Awareness Message is to advise the campus community about health and safety issues (crime prevention, traffic and weather info) so people can make informed decisions.

Community Awareness Message Example: Traffic Detour at (location). Police Investigating Traffic Accident.

Community Awareness Messages may be delivered by all or a combination of the following methods of distribution:

• Push notification via NIU Safe app
• Information posted on the Current Safety Notifications web page
• Email to students, employees and parents
• NIU Police and Public Safety on Facebook
• @NIUPolice on Twitter