Getting Access to Campus Alerts for Neighbors and Businesses

Many college students live in North Fargo because of NDSU.

When there’s a campus alert, it’s only sent to students and staff.

Others in the area want the same notifications.

After recent criminal events near NDSU, neighbors and business owners have some concerns.

NDSU student Ashley Neva says that she gets text messages, emails and a phone call when there’s an alert sent from the college.

Neva says, “I get bombarded when something happens.”

Students get notifications for not only on campus but for incidents that happens nearby.

But for neighbors and local businesses owners, they’re left in the dark.

“There were cops everywhere, undercover ones, regular ones in police clothing. I honestly had no idea what was going on,” says Pamela Douglas.

Douglas lives in North Fargo, near the location where gun shots were fired last week.

She said she was heading home from work and wished she was given a heads up.

Douglas adds, “Maybe have an email or even a text, a message alert saying what’s going on.”

NDSU students all received messages about the incident on Thursday.

But for those living or working in the area, they say they should be included.

“You want to know what’s going on around you as far as public safety and stuff like that,” says Herd and Horns General Manager Rob Zastre.

Ashley Neva expresses, “I’m shocked that other companies can’t get it because it’s a very simple system. So I think it should be something extended to them. We get annoyed as students. So I feel that the safety should be extended.”

The city of Fargo offers CodeRED alerts for when there’s an emergency.

But getting campus notifications, for even events, could be beneficial to businesses.

“If there was something going on, on campus that would affect our guests and our business then I think that’s something we’d want to know about as well,”says Zastre.

Being informed and connected is all they ask.

“Anything to help the community, I think would be in anyone’s best interest to know what’s going on,” says Douglas.

NDSU has not yet responded on this matter.

But to sign up for CodeRED, you can click here for more information.