Kansas State University

  1. K-State home
  2. »Policies
  3. »PPM
  4. »3700 Public Safety
  5. »PPM Chapter 3725: K-State Alerts

Policies

Questions relating to the information in each chapter of the Policies and Procedures Manual should be directed to the office issuing the chapter.

That information is usually located at the end of each chapter.

For policy update questions, please contact policy@ksu.edu.

K-State Alerts

Chapter 3725
Issued March 7, 2019, Updated Feb. 3, 2023, Updated May 10, 2024

Table of Contents

.010 Introduction
.020 Activation
.030 Enrollment
.040 Questions

.010 Introduction

K-State Alerts is Kansas State University’s notification system that gives campus authorities the ability to communicate information quickly to the university community using some or all of the following channels:

  • Text messaging (SMS)
  • Automated phone calls
  • Broadcast emails to all k-state.edu accounts
  • Alert beacons
  • Police public address systems
  • Postings to the K-State website
  • Social media platforms Facebook and X
  • Digital display monitors

K-State Alerts will be used when a potentially dangerous condition affects campus, when a decision to close the campus has been made, or when a decision to reopen the campus following a forced closure has been made.

.020 Activation

The decision to activate K-State Alerts, and the level of notification, are discretionary decisions made on a case-by-case basis. 

Only designated personnel may activate, or request staff to activate, the K-State Alert system. These personnel, as designated by the K-State Alerts Committee, are as follows:

Manhattan Campus

  • University President
  • Vice President for University Operations and Chief Operating Officer
  • Provost and Executive Vice President
  • Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students
  • Vice President of Communications and Marketing
  • Chief Risk and Safety Officer
  • Assistant Vice President for University Risk and Compliance
  • Kansas State University Police Department Command Staff+
  • Division of Communication and Marketing staff who complete K-State Alerts training
  • Kansas State University dispatchers*
  • Approved personnel with Modified List Administrator privileges#

+ NOTE: Only the Kansas State University Police Department Command Staff may issue the “Imminent Danger” message.

* NOTE: If a Tornado Warning is issued by the National Weather Service that affects the Manhattan Campus, an automatic K-State Alert will be sent. All clear alerts will need to be sent by K-State personnel.

# NOTE: Modified List Administrator privileges allow for the sending of an alert to a pre-designated list of employees, students, or other stakeholders for a specific hazard or function. These notifications are limited to the text, e-mail, and telephone modalities.

Salina Campus

  • Dean and CEO
  • Assistant Dean of Student Life
  • Director of Communications and Marketing
  • Communications Coordinator
  • University Police Sergeant

Olathe Campus

  • Dean and CEO
  • Associate Dean of Academics
  • Director of Communications and Marketing
  • Communications and Marketing Manager

Upon activation of the K-State Alerts system, the designated University personnel will prepare a message and send it to the affected portions of the campus community.

.030 Enrollment

University Affiliated Stakeholders

All K-State students, faculty and staff will be automatically enrolled to receive alert messages by email and text message. Email notifications will be sent to all addresses in the k-state.edu domain. Students, faculty and staff personalize K-State Alerts notifications through the K-State Alerts portal.

Unaffiliated Stakeholders

People not directly associated with Kansas State University (e.g. those attending events on campus, community partners, local emergency responders, parents, etc.) may enroll for K-State Alerts by texting KSTATEVISITOR to 67283. Users will receive notifications by text message when K-State Alerts is activated for any of the three campuses. 

Kansas State University does not charge for this service, however carrier message and data rates may apply. Text messages are sent on an as-needed basis. This service is provided per the Rave Mobile Safety Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Text STOP KSTATEVISITOR to 67283 to cancel or HELP for tech support.

 .040 Questions

Questions are to be directed to the University Police Department at at (785) 532-6412 or the Emergency Management Coordinator at kstateem@k-state.edu.

Policy Cross References

3110 Clery Act Designation and Reporting Policy (.040 Issuing Timely Warnings)

3015 Threat Management Policy (.050 Threat Management Team/Critical Incident Response Team Members)