Jan. 17, 2008

Liz Babiarz, 404-413-1356
University Relations

New campus emergency communications center at University Commons

The Georgia State community will now have a higher level of safety and security thanks to a new emergency communications center that opened this month.

Located on Piedmont Avenue in the rear of the University Commons housing complex, the 1,400-square-foot center is filled with state-of-the art technology that will allow dispatchers to respond to emergency calls faster and more efficiently.

“It will ensure that we are as technologically prepared from an emergency communications point of view as any law enforcement jurisdiction in the country,” said Georgia State Police Chief Connie Sampson.

The communications center also puts an increased police presence at the University Commons for Georgia State students. Dispatchers will be able to monitor more than 100 cameras inside and outside of the Commons for any suspicious activity, said Angelia Jennings, Georgia State Police’s communications supervisor.

In addition, dispatchers have better equipment to protect the entire campus. Each console is equipped with four monitors. One screen gives dispatchers access to the online Georgia Bureau of Investigation database, where they can quickly run criminal background checks and look up vehicle tags. The center includes a supervisor’s station, televisions for news and a bunker-style command center.

For the communication dispatchers, who have been working in a crammed center with outmoded equipment and a leaky roof in One Park Place, the new communication center is a welcomed improvement.

“With the new center, the response time will be even quicker because of the touch screen computers, and it should also increase our accuracy,” said Shanta Hutchinson, a communications dispatcher.

The center, as part of the University Commons project, is being financed through $168 million in bonds by the Georgia State University Foundation’s Piedmont/Ellis LLC.

Georgia State’s Police Department, a national, fully accredited agency, reminds you to dial 3333, not 911, if there is an emergency on campus.