Ohio University-Zanesville receives grant for “Campus Safety Connect” project

Photo cutline: BJ Smith (center), Director of External Affairs at AT&T, presents a check to Dr. Jim Fonseca, Dean at Ohio University-Zanesville for Campus Safety Connect, a project that will allow the Zanesville campus of Ohio University and Zane State College to have enhanced 911 notification from every building and room with a telephone on campus. Community partners for the project who were on hand for the check presentation included from left, Corey Hamilton, Health Commissioner, Zanesville Muskingum County Health Department, Bo Keck, Enhanced 911 Coordinator for Muskingum County; Terry Moore, Director of Security for the campus; Dr. Paul Brown, President at Zane State College; County Commissioner Dorothy Montgomery and Mayor Howard (Butch) Zwelling.

The AT&T Foundation — the corporate philanthropy organization of AT&T Inc. – has awarded $18,280 to Ohio University-Zanesville through the AT&T Excelerator competitive technology grant program. The Zanesville campus of Ohio University-Zanesville and Zane State College, with cooperation from the Zanesville-Muskingum County Health Department and county 911 coordination office, will build technology infrastructure for enhanced 911 software and text messaging.

The project will allow for programming specific locations on campus so that when 911 is called from campus the first responders can find the location quickly. With more than 3,000 visitors to campus everyday, providing security and a safe environment is a top priority for the administration. The project will also provide an additional way to notify those on campus in the event of an emergency.

Taking a proactive approach to emergency communication on the Zanesville campus of Ohio University and Zane State College has many benefits. In addition to providing a safe environment for students, visitors and employees, the project will help prepare the campus to serve as a point of distribution (POD) for the Zanesville Muskingum County Health Department should that ever become necessary. A state-of-the-art communications system is critical to emergency preparedness on campus and in the community.

“In light of the incident at Virginia Tech, the Zanesville campus determined that applying for funding for this emergency communication plan would be timely and in the best interest of the community.” said Jim Fonseca, dean at Ohio University-Zanesville. “We are excited to partner with the community to enhance security on campus, and we thank AT&T for the funding to get this project started,” he added.

“The collaborative nature of this project is directly in keeping with AT&T’s mission of enhancing technology in our communities,” said BJ Smith, director of external affairs for AT&T. “The shared resources that Ohio University-Zanesville and Zane State College continue to leverage to make such projects a reality is a model for others to follow.”

Since 2002, the AT&T Excelerator program has provided more than 2,500 technology grants — totaling more than $47.8 million — to organizations across the country. Last year, 680 nonprofit organizations across the country benefited from nearly $9 million through the competitive program.

While a leader in communications nationally, AT&T continues to be a local employer with 80 people providing wireless, voice and high-speed Internet services for business and residential customers throughout the county.