Timely Warnings/Crime Alerts

Keeping our Community Informed

A Timely Warning will be issued to the community when incidents of criminal activity, specifically the crimes reported on the statistics page of our Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, occur on campus or within the immediate proximity of campus and are a continuing threat. The intent of a Timely Warning regarding criminal incidents is to enable people to protect themselves and to aid in the prevention of similar crimes. A timely warning will be sent as soon as pertinent information is available.

Timely Warnings differ from Emergency Notifications. Timely Warnings are sent to inform our community of less than imminent threats or instances of re-occurring crime trends. Timely Warnings are sent by means of the same modes of communication, with the exception of SMS text messages. Text messages are reserved for instances when an imminent threat is perceived that constitute an Emergency Notification. Emergency Notifications are sent via the Rave Alert System.

Information that will initiate a Timely Warning or Emergency Notification may originate from reports made to the DePauw Police Department, local Law Enforcement Agencies or the Putnam County 911 Center.

Students are automatically included in the Rave Alert™ system. A faculty or staff member who wishes to be included must opt into the system by visiting their employee profile on e-services, selecting “edit your profile” choice, scrolling to the bottom of the page and selecting “opt-in” to receive Emergency SMS alert notifications and adding a cell phone number.

If a tornado is approaching, the Putnam County 911 Center will activate a warning siren and send a text message. Sirens are tested on the first Friday of every month at 11 a.m., except during inclement weather, when the testing process will be rescheduled for the second Friday of the month.