Supplying students with a net of safety resources via one platform, the RowanSafe app launched on Sept. 13, through the administration of the Rowan University Police Department. 

This Rowan University safety app is free and can be downloaded from Google Play and Apple App Stores. The app’s home screen features 13 tabs with safety tools ranging from emergency plans, campus maps, and parking resources. When clicking on individual tabs, they bring downloaders to new pages that supply information on campus security services. 

The app’s creator, Motorola Solutions, who released AppArmor, works jointly with the police department to send out Rowan alerts. When first downloading the platform, it asks users if the app can send them safety notifications from the Rowan Police Department. 

Freshman Biology student Ava Kelly finds the notifications she receives from the platform useful as a commuter student. 

“I always get the notifications for it and I always look, especially with the car ones because I commute,” said Kelly.

Rowan Safe’s home screens’ top buttons in red bring users directly to a page to call either Rowan Non-Emergency, 911, or any of Rowan’s Campus Police Departments. When any emergencies may occur on campus, the app advises to contact the local departments through its call line. When any off-campus emergencies occur, the app states to please call 911. 

For Rowan’s Director of the Office of Emergency Management, Steven Rolando, the obtainability of this platform is what he hopes streamlines the department’s message to the community to promote safety. 

“In this application, we feel that there are a lot of things at the fingertips that are accessible to them as opposed to just going to the Rowan main page and searching those items. It’s convenient, and we know that an electronic device is in the hands of every one of our community members,” said Rolando.

The second app feature, Mobile Bluelight, helps students on campus who may be in a situation where they are concerned for their safety automatically send the location of where they are at to campus police and talk to an officer on the phone. There are two yellow trigger buttons in the app, once clicking on them one can send the user’s device location and the other can create a call to Dispatch.  

“I feel as though it makes the campus way more safe, the blue lights are all around campus but it’s easier to just hit it on your phone, instead of going to a light yourself,” said Sophomore Dual English and Education major, Samuel Kitchen. 

The Campus Maps section has photos of all the maps for Rowan’s Main Campus, CMSRU Campus, Rowan Virtua SOM Sewell & Stratford Campus, Shuttle Services, and parking for the main campus. Parking resources are also available for all students at each campus and visitors to Cooper Medical School of Rowan University in the app. 

“For the people who aren’t affiliated with the university and should they want to visit our campuses, we have maps with physical written directions. Not that anybody uses it anymore, but it certainly is an option,” said Rolando. 

The RowanSafe app also includes the Virtual Walkhome feature for students at Glassboro Main Campus and Virtua SOM Stratford Campus. When starting a Virtual Walkhome, the location of the cell phone’s device is tracked through GPS and the user is anonymous. Campus Police will be alerted and track where the user is traveling to and from their destination. 

“I think the RowanSafe app is a great thing for this campus. Sometimes it gets scary at night especially when you’re alone. No matter how big or how tall you are, it is still scary as a person,” said Freshman Radio, Television & Film major, Mattie Mac Kay. “I think the tool is a great thing, having something that you could just go and report something. It’s very great for the school because, at the end of the day, everyone deserves to feel safe and be safe.”

Students’ friends can watch their location as they make their way to their final destination through the Friend Walk feature. It allows users to pick a phone contact to send a current location link to connect. This tool works without the walk being in the confines of the university for it to function. After users pick a destination, the friend can watch the trip and if an emergency occurs there is an emergency call button in the app which also notifies the friend. 

“I like [the Friend Walk tool,] especially because I take late classes and it’s always sketchy sometimes in the night and it makes me feel safer,” said Kelly. 

The Student Tool Kit feature in the app provides campus resources including Rowan Shuttle Services, Room Lock Out, Wellness Center Counseling Services, and more. The Emergency Plans section provides direct online links to university services such as evacuation and fire safety plans to support community emergency preparedness. 

“The support resources are also important to us, at your fingertips you have the disposal of anything that you need,” said Rolando. “Whether it be emergent or information, it is directly here. You have academic support, you have the Title Nine options, student mental counseling, and student life.”

Rowan Police hopes RowanSafe will be well received by the university and are excited to see if the effect will work beneficially. While the app continues to grow, Rolando hopes to see RowanSafe expand to support all of Glassboro’s West Campus once the building construction in the area is completed. 

“We’re always vetting ways to improve and make our community better. Safety is paramount, we have very passionate employees and we thought bringing this product to our Rowan community is certainly going to be beneficial. We are hoping to achieve great results with us launching it and our community accepting it,” said Rolando.

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