University of Minnesota uses online notification system to alert students about crime on campus

By Rachel Mills 

University of Minnesota students' phones lit up on Feb. 18 around 12 p.m. notifying them of an attempted kidnapping on campus.

The University's Safe-U notification system had sent an email to students and faculty describing the crime. 

The email described the location, the victim's appearance and the crime itself. 

The University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus frequently utilizes this notification system to alert students and faculty of potential safety emergencies on or near campus. At least one notification is sent out a month, according to the university's public safety page.

Sophomore Jenna Straw

Jenna Straw, a sophomore at the U of M, said the notifications are unsettling. 

“The reports are like 'this happened at East Bank light rail station,' and I’m like ‘oh, I’m there every day.’ It's a little concerning,” Straw said.

Karina Engler, a freshman at the University of Minnesota, said she likes the safety notification system, but questions whether every crime is reported.

"Night's a little sketchy, especially on West Bank," Engler, who lives in Middlebrook Hall, said. "I want to know what's going on around me."

The most recent data from the university reveals there were 71 reported incidents involving theft in 2018 on the Twin Cities campus, according to the university's 2019 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report for Minneapolis and St. Paul Campuses. There were also 31 reported incidents involving assault, according to the report.

Junior Hannah Ihekoronye said the reports allow her to know which areas "like Dinkytown" she feels she should avoid.

 Junior Hannah Ihekoronye

Ihekoronye also said the police and campus security aren't doing enough.

“It’s one thing to alert somebody, but it's another thing to say what you're actually doing," Ihekoronye said.

She said she sees the police on campus patrolling, but rarely sees them actively engaging with the community.