Case Study: Washington University in St. Louis achieves unified, faster campus-wide emergency notifications with Alertus Technologies

Using Integration To Create A Unified Emergency Mass Notification System

Washington University in St. Louis, a large urban campus with six campuses and more than 14,000 students and staff, needed a comprehensive, unified mass notification system to replace multiple segmented programs that delayed alerts and required separate logins. The university selected Alertus Technologies and its Alertus system (ThreatWatch, Alert Beacon, desktop notifications and digital signage override) to provide an integrated, easy‑button approach that could tie into existing systems.

Alertus Technologies implemented a single-dashboard solution connected to NOAA via ThreatWatch and integrated with Everbridge so activations automatically trigger beacons, text-to-speech devices, PA, desktop pop-ups, cable TV overrides and immediate website updates. The deployment delivered near-instant desktop alerts, removed the 5–30 minute manual posting delay, enabled targeted campus-specific messaging, and a planned polygon-based ThreatWatch enhancement could cut unnecessary tornado warnings by roughly 50% (historical data showed 10 of 12 recent warnings would not have triggered).

Washington University in St. Louis

Mark Bagby

Director of emergency management