Florida State University students, faculty, staff and visitors have a new tool to keep them safe wherever they go, on and off campus.
SeminoleSAFE is a comprehensive mobile app that offers users the ability to report information and receive emergency notices. It also includes real-time updates and information on how to respond to issues such as severe weather, active shooter situations and behavioral health crises.
“SeminoleSAFE is more than just alerts and responding to immediate problems,” said Assistant Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of Police David Perry. “We’ve included content to help you plan ahead and prepare for emergencies long before they ever happen.”
“Few applications can claim to have the potential of having a real impact on keeping the user safe, and this application has certainly been designed from the ground up for that purpose,” said Major Jim Russell, FSU Deputy Chief of Police.
The SeminoleSAFE app also allows users to report behavioral concerns such as sexual misconduct or stalking and offers another tool called “Friend Walk.” Users can send a notification to a friend or family member that allows them to temporarily track their walk from one place to another via GPS. They can even trigger a call to emergency officials if necessary.
“FSU understands that timely information and easily accessible resources provide our community important tools to enhance their safety and their ability to actively have a hand in security through two-way means of information sharing,” Russell said.
Another SeminoleSAFE feature allows users to instantly send photo messages to the Florida State University Police Department with the exact location where the photo was taken, which can be useful to law enforcement when investigating alleged crimes. The app also allows witnesses to provide anonymous tips through the Silent Witness portal or Big Bend Crime Stoppers.
Perhaps most importantly, the app can even be altered in real time by campus safety administrators.
“SeminoleSAFE allows us to modify its content instantaneously for all users,” said Dave Bujak, FSU’s director of Emergency Management. “In the event of an emergency, we can push the pertinent content to the front.”
“Not only is the new app a major tool in the safety toolbox for the FSU community,” Bujak said, “but also the broader Tallahassee community and FSU friends nationwide.”
For instance, clicking on the weather feature shows Tallahassee campus conditions and weather information for other FSU locations such as the Ringling Museum in Sarasota or the Panama City campus, and even links to the ACC weather network.
“We realize that apps of all sorts are constantly competing for space on your device,” Perry said. “For that reason, we designed SeminoleSAFE to be valuable to users on a daily basis with weather, traffic information, maps, directions and resource directories consolidated into one convenient location.”
Bujak encourages all users to submit feedback on ways to improve the app through the “About/Preferences” tab. It is now available on all Android devices in Google Play and in the App store for Apple devices: https://emergency.fsu.edu/services/seminolesafe-mobile-app.