Gallaudet Implements EmergenSee, a Personal Safety Smartphone App

Gallaudet University is now using EmergenSee, a fully automated personal security app for smartphones and tablets, which allows users to stream video, audio, pictures, GPS location, movements, and text messages during emergency situations directly to the university’s Department of Public Safety (DPS).

EmergenSee is included in Gallaudet’s free mobile app, mGallaudet, for the iPhone and Android and is ready for use by students, faculty, staff, as well as visitors to campus. Once activated, EmergenSee will stream video, audio, and pictures to Public Safety as well as the user’s pre-selected contacts. The emergency contact will also be able to track the user’s location and movements and communicate with them via two-way chat session (text). 

“EmergenSee is an excellent tool to help keep the Gallaudet campus community safe,” said Theodore Baran, director of the Department of Public Safety. “As a university for deaf and hard of hearing students, empowering our community to communicate to dispatchers through live streaming video, photos, text messages, as well as audio directly from their smartphones is enormously beneficial and provides us with a multi-faceted approach to ensuring the safety of our campus.”

DPS dispatchers are certified in Advanced Law Enforcement and Emergency Medical Dispatching with specialized training in response to fire, police, and medical emergencies. The dispatchers monitor the EmergenSee feed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year. DPS officers will respond to EmergenSee alerts received by dispatchers within a designated area known as a geo fence, which is contained within the perimeters of the campus. 

Notable features of EmergenSee include:

• Virtual Escort which allows the user to pre-program a timer if they feel unsafe. If the timer expires before the user has reached their destination, EmergenSee will automatically begin an incident report and alert the emergency contacts
• Stealth Mode which turns the device screen black to give the impression that it is off, but the phone continues to stream video to the user’s emergency contacts
• Personal Profile where users can store information about their medical history, allergies, and medications for first responders
• Mass Broadcast Alerts which sends text message alerts to the campus community about potential threats and other emergency situations.
• Incident File Recovery where a full recording of an incident is saved in the user’s Incident History

EmergenSee is for any smart-device including iPhones and iPads equipped with iOS 6.0 and higher and on Android Phones and Tablets running 3.2 + or higher. Click here to learn more about Gallaudet’s mobile app, mGallaudet.

To view the News Channel 8 story, click here. The link contains a video component (no captions) as well as a written version of the story. 

Gallaudet University, federally chartered in 1864, is a bilingual, diverse, multicultural institution of higher education that ensures the intellectual and professional advancement of deaf and hard of hearing individuals through American Sign Language and English. Gallaudet maintains a proud tradition of research and scholarly activity and prepares its graduates for career opportunities in a highly competitive, technological, and rapidly changing world.

About EmergenSeeEmergenSee® turns your smartphone into a personal security system instantly streaming Live Audio, Video, and GPS Locations to pre-selected contact or Professional Safety Responders when threatening and potentially dangerous situations are encountered. EmergenSee’s patented technology helps millions of people, saving lives every day.  For more information visit www.EmergenSee.com

Gallaudet University Contact: 
Kaitlin Luna, Coordinator of Media and Public Relations
(202) 448-7106 voice
(202) 250-2973 videophone
(585) 507-1705 mobile/text
kaitlin.luna@gallaudet.edu