Information Police Home Page Mission Statement Staff Recognition Campus Safety Report Email Us

Divisions Patrol Communication Records Disaster Preparedness Community Services Officers (CSOs) Citizen Volunteer Program

Services Campus Safety Report Citizen Complaints Crime and Arrest Logs Crime Map Crime Prevention Crime Reporting Forms Live Scan (Fingerprinting) Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) Victim Information

Links Additional Links Campus Maps Campus News Campus Oriented Problem Solving (COPS) Parking Services

1. What is the Cal State San Bernardino Emergency Notification System?
   It is an emergency messaging system that can simultaneously send safety alerts to phones, e-mail addresses, text/SMS and TTY/TDD devices. It will be used only for emergency communication purposes and for occasional announcements that could be of interest to all or specific parts of the campus community.
2. What is Connect-ED® and Blackboard Connect?
   Connect-ED® is one of several distinctive services that Cal State San Bernardino has contracted to support the university’s emergency notification system. The Connect-ED® service is provided by the company Blackboard Connect.
3. Where did you get my contact information?
   The emergency notification system uses contact information from your MyCoyote account. Updates can be made by visiting MyCoyote and accessing the self-service pages. Access My Coyote and select the Student Self Service Center or the Employee tab for faculty and staff. Go to the HR Personal Info section to update phone numbers.
4. Am I automatically enrolled to receive messages from the Emergency Notification System?
   While all faculty, staff and students are automatically enrolled to receive emergency messages, we ask that you log into MyCoyote to confirm your data. Please provide all of your contact information, including a cell phone, so the university will have more ways to reach you in the event of an emergency. Emergency notification alerts will primarily be used for emergency communication purposes.
5. How do I update my contact information?
   Just log into MyCoyote and update your personal information. The university will refresh contact information for the Emergency Notification System regularly.
6. I work for the Cal State San Bernardino Foundation. How do I update my information?
   Foundation employees also have access to the MyCoyote self-service pages. They may update their information through these pages as well.
7. I work for ASI. How do I update my information?
   ASI employees can update their information with MyCoyote. Log into MyCoyote and make sure you include all your contact information in the fields provided.
8. What contact data should I provide to Cal State San Bernardino?
   The alert@csusb service will deliver a pre-recorded message to the following phone types extracted from MyCoyote: Main phone number; Home phone number; Business phone number; Cellular or SMS text phone number; TDD/TTY device phone number You campus email address - @csusb.edu – will be used for email messages and your cellular phone number will be used for text messages. The best emergency contact number is probably your cell phone number.
9. How many phone numbers can I put in the Emergency Notification System?
   Every faculty, staff and student can list phone numbers in the following fields: a main phone, a cell phone, home phone, business phone and TDD/TTY device. A main number is required, and can be any primary phone such as for your home or mobile. Providing your cell phone is recommended so you can receive safety alerts through a text message and a voice message.
10. What are the consequences of not providing my cell phone number?
    Providing your cell phone is not mandatory. However, emergency notification messages will generally be urgent and time sensitive. Providing us more options to reach you, such as calling your cell phone or sending a text message, increases our ability to communicate important information in the event of an emergency.
11. Who else will have access to my cell phone number?
    No one. The cell phone number you provide in MyCoyote will remain confidential. It is uploaded into the alert@csusb system for emergency notifications, but it will NOT be released to anyone else.
12. What if my contact numbers or preferred e-mails have changed?
    You must update your contact information by going to MyCoyote. The university will refresh contact information for the Emergency Notification System regularly.
13. How will I be alerted if I don't have a cell phone?
    Alert messages will also be sent to other phone numbers and e-mail addresses you have listed in MyCoyote. In addition, emergency information will continue to be sent to campus via e-mail and voice messages to office phones, and it will be posted on the Cal State San Bernardino Web site and Emergency Hotline at (909) 537-5999. The university has also implemented a new public address system and a telephone announcement system that automatically activates all office and classroom speaker phones.
14. Why do I have to have a main phone line and e-mail address?
    It is university policy that we have a current main phone number for every faculty, staff and student. E-mail is an official communication vehicle for the university.
15. What does it cost to get the Emergency Notification System messages?
    There is no charge to subscribe to the service, but call and text messaging fees from cellular phone service providers could apply. Please contact your cellular provider directly for your specific rate and billing information.
16. Why did my cell phone carrier send me a message confirming a subscription?
    Some mobile phone service provides will confirm that you want to receive text messages from the Cal State San Bernardino Emergency Notification System the first time you receive an emergency notification message. Follow the text message instructions, and then the emergency notification text message will be delivered.
17. Why did I get a confirmation text message from sms@blackboard.com? Was this the message?
    No. Connect-ED® is required to activate the SMS system with a simple confirmation message BEFORE anyone receives a message.
18. How will I know a message is really from Cal State San Bernardino’s Emergency Notification System?
    Messages from the Emergency Notification System will have the ID 23177 on text messages, (909) 537-5000 on phone messages and alert@csusb.edu on e-mail messages. The campus community is encouraged to add these contacts into their cell phones under CSUSB Alert.
19. I see a caller ID display of (909) 537-5000. Who is this?
    When Cal State San Bernardino sends a call out using the Connect-ED® service, it will always display Caller ID information. Please save this number on your cell phone as a contact (eg. "CSUSB Alert") to represent the university calling you.
20. Why does the university have to test the Emergency Notification System?
    The university must test the Emergency Notification System to ensure it is securely in place as well as to familiarize the campus community with this important emergency communication vehicle. It will only be done three times a year, once during the fall, winter and spring quarters.
21. I heard there was an Emergency Notification message. Why didn’t I receive a message?
    It is possible that we do not have your contact information loaded in the Connect-ED® service, or it may be inaccurate. All contact information is culled from MyCoyote. Log into MyCoyote and make sure you include all your contact information in the fields provided. If the correct information was already in MyCoyote, but you did not receive a test message, please e-mail alert@csusb.edu or call the Help Desk at (909) 537-7677 so we can resolve the issue.
22. Why didn’t I receive a text message on my phone when the Connect-ED® message went out?
    To receive text messages, you will need to provide the university with your mobile phone number. Please log into MyCoyote and check the data under "Phone Numbers." Make sure your cell phone is under the Phone Type called “Cellular.” Even if you have your cell phone entered under another phone type, the Connect-ED ® system will not know that number can accept text/SMS messages. If you do not have a number listed for “Cellular,” then add a phone number, choose the phone type "Cellular" in the drop down menu, and then type in your cell phone number. Make sure you save your data. For assistance with MyCoyote, call the Help Desk at (909) 537-7677.
23. I received the message in my e-mail inbox, but when I clicked the link to play the message nothing happened. Why?
    You may not have a default media player like Windows Media Player or QuickTime Player installed. Download these players from www.microsoft.com or www.apple.com and install on your computer to listen to messages.
24. I received the message but I missed the information. What should I do?
    While on the call, you can replay the message by pressing the star key (*) at the end of the message. You may also check your e-mail to locate the link for that message.
25. I received the message but it kept looping/repeating. Why?
    The system does its best to detect whether it has reached a live person or an answering machine. Sometimes loud ambient noises may cause the system to loop. If this happens, use the mute feature on your phone or move to a quieter location to prevent the message from looping or repeating.
26. How do I opt-out?
    You can opt-out of receiving cell and text messages by eliminating that number in MyCoyote. However, we strongly advise against that. It is important that we have every option available to reach you in time of a crisis. You cannot opt-out of a primary phone number or your e-mail.
27. Can I opt-out of just receiving text messages?
    Yes – Just follow the instructions when you receive your text message. However, we strongly advise against that. It is important that we have every option available to reach you in time of a crisis.
28. What if I opted-out, but have changed my mind and want to opt back in?
    Just log back into MyCoyote and update your contact information. If you opted out through text messaging 23177, simply text SUBSCRIBE to 23177 to initiate the opt-in process.
29. When will I receive a confirmation message?
    The confirmation messages are sent during business hours (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST). The MyCoyote data is uploaded to Connect-ED® at the end of the day every weekday (excluding holidays). You should expect the confirmation request to arrive sometime during the next business day.
30. If I sign up at night, when will I receive the confirmation message?
    Data from MyCoyote that is updated after that day’s file has been uploaded to Connect-ED® requires an additional day for processing. For example, if you sign up or change information on MyCoyote on a Tuesday night, that information will not be sent to Connect-ED® until the end of the day on Wednesday. Therefore, you would not receive your confirmation message until Thursday. The confirmation messages are sent during business hours (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST).
31. I did not receive a confirmation message. What happened?
    Please check with your mobile phone provider to find out if your device accepts text messages. You may also want to check with your provider to see if text messaging has been enabled. You may need to subscribe to a text-messaging plan in order to receive or reply to text messages.
32. I did not receive a confirmation message because my phone wasn’t text enabled. I have since contacted my mobile phone provider to enable it. Do I need another confirmation message sent?
    No. If your SMS phone was already submitted to our database, you should be confirmed to receive SMS alerts from us. However, you may also test to find out by texting the word "SUBSCRIBE CSUSB" to 23177 and you will receive a reply with the following:
      CSUSB Alert: This phone number has already been opted in. More info text reply "HELP" or "STOP CSUSB" to opt-out.
33. If I change mobile phone providers but keep the same number, do I need to opt-in again?
    No. Once your phone number has been opted-in, it stays registered within the system.
34. What if I received a message and I am not affiliated with Cal State San Bernardino or I already opted out of the service?
    If you are a community member or someone else who erroneously receives a call, please contact the CSUSB Help Desk at (909) 537-7677 or send an e-mail to alert@csusb.edu and your number will be removed from the service immediately.

If you do not have MS Office installed on your computer you can download an Office File Viewer from Microsoft.com