Emergency Communications

They are notices of any significant emergency or dangerous situation occurring on a Central Piedmont campus that involve an immediate threat to the health or safety of our students or employees. This may be: an approaching weather event, such as a tornado, a hazardous material incident, a threat of violence, an armed person, or an outbreak of a serious contagious disease or illness. Emergency Notifications may also serve as a Timely Warning if the reported incident is also defined as a Clery crime (Review “Timely Warnings” on this page to learn more.)

Upon confirmation of a significant emergency or dangerous situation, the college will send an Emergency Notification with instructions and information regarding the incident via text, email, desktop notifier, RSS feed, and social media. Messages with additional information and instructions will follow as they become available. Emergency Notifications direct all individuals to take immediate action (e.g. shelter-in-place, avoid affected areas, evacuate the campus.)

Timely warnings are required by the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act and often referred to as the Clery Act. A Clery timely warning aids in the prevention of similar crimes by alerting the campus community and thereby enabling community members to take necessary precautions. The Clery Act requires higher education institutions to report statistics on certain crimes, which are referred to as “Clery Act crimes.” 

Review our Annual Security Report (PDF)

The college issues timely warnings when it determines that a Clery Act crime has been committed and presents a serious or continuing threat to the campus community. Examples include:

• aggravated assault
• burglaries (occupied rooms/offices/structures)
• criminal homicide
• hate crimes
• people with weapons with intent to use
• robbery
• sex offenses

For a timely warning to be issued, the crime must have been reported to a campus security authority — such as Campus Security or an official with significant responsibility for student and campus activities — or local police. It also must have occurred on campus, on immediately accessible public property, or at a college-affiliated location.

The college makes decisions to issue a timely warning on a case-by-case basis, in light of all the facts surrounding the crime and the continuing danger to the campus community. The Clery Act does not define what is “timely.” The college issues warnings promptly, as soon as clear, pertinent information is available so that members of the campus community may take precautionary measures.

Generally, timely warnings will specify the type of crime reported, time and location that the crime occurred, and specific advice to the campus community regarding steps to take to avoid becoming a victim. If the suspect has not been identified, the warning will also include a description of the suspect(s), based on police reports. 

The purpose of timely warnings is to provide information that will allow members of the Central Piedmont community to make informed decisions about ensuring personal safety. To protect all those involved in the case, the college will only share as many details as are needed in order to promote safety. Often, the incident will be an open police investigation. The college does not comment or share details about a case under active investigation.

If there’s an emergency on campus or a closing due to inclement weather, wouldn’t you want to know? Central Piedmont takes a multilayered approach to emergency communications to ensure that the community is well informed in such an event.

All college emergency communications come from the critical alert emergency notification system, currently powered by Rave Mobile Safety.

This notification system will only be used in the event of a true emergency (e.g., intruder, natural disaster, severe weather, or campus emergency) and/or a campus closing to send alert messages. You may also receive a test message each semester to ensure that the system is working properly.

Follow these instructions to update, and add your mobile, work, and home phone number(s) — plus your mailing address and any non-Central Piedmont email addresses: 

1. Use your college login and password to access your User Profile in MyCollege. 
2. Review and edit your current address, email address(es) and phone number(s).
3. Review your Emergency Information in MyCollege for whom we should contact if you have (or are involved in) an emergency.

We strongly encourage you to keep your mobile number updated in your MyCollege user profile for emergency communications.

You cannot opt-out of Critical Alert notification emails to your Central Piedmont account because your Central Piedmont email is the college’s official channel of communication.

In the event of a campus emergency, the college will send an email to your Central Piedmont email account. 

You can also opt in to receive voice and/or text messages by registering your phone number in the critical alert emergency notification system. If no one answers, the system leaves a voicemail. The system will also send messages to TTY/TDD devices.

Signing up for additional notifications is free. However, be aware of your individual cell phone plan's call and text messaging costs. The numbers you provide will remain confidential. Central Piedmont and Rave Mobile Safety will not release your numbers to third parties. 

If you are no longer with the college, or if your phone number is in our system by mistake and you would no longer like to receive critical alert messages, email the Service Desk.

The critical alert system is only one part of the college's notification toolkit. Emergency messages are sent via campus email, posted on the Central Piedmont website, updated on the emergency information hotline (704-330-6888), and shared on local media (including radio, TV, and online). In a crisis situation, there are factors beyond our control and there is no total guarantee that you will receive critical alert notifications. We encourage you to access all methods of communication provided by the college, as possible.