Awareness Guides Spreading Across Campus
Public Safety student workers Fiona Chadwick and Meghan Cokely have created a series of emergency preparedness guides for distribution across campus. These handouts highlight how to prepare for an emergency and what you can do to remain calm in the event of an emergency on campus.

Fiona and Meghan also created “You’ve Been Bitten” cards which call out the importance of preventing theft of personal items on campus. When our officers see unattended bags, electronics, and other items, they’ll leave a card to remind you that theft on campus can often be prevented simply by keeping an eye on your things while in public spaces.

Thanks to our student workers for their invaluable contributions to the mission of Public Safety!

Relay for Life Fundraising
In March, the Public Safety team volunteered with Northeastern University Police Department’s Relay for Life team. Their efforts helped to raise more than $1,500 for the American Cancer Society.

Public Safety Who’s Who
Coming soon, there will be a Public Safety team photo wall outside of our main entrance in Palace Road and near the entrance of the Public Safety Office in Simmons Hall. We hope this helps everyone on campus recognize our team members. If you see us around, say hello! We’re always looking for opportunities to engage with the community.

Throughout July and August, the Buildings & Grounds team will be working to replace the roofs of the School of Management Building and the Park Science Center.

Both buildings’ roofs sustained damage during a hailstorm late last summer. Temporary repairs were made shortly afterwards so that the roof replacement project could be postponed until after the academic year concluded.

While work is in progress, a crane will be parked on the grassy area between the two buildings. This area will be inaccessible during the project, but the rest of the academic campus quad will still be available for you to get out and enjoy the summer weather.

If you have any questions about this project, please contact Richard Stewart at [email protected].

Simmons Technology is rolling out ID card based printing for faculty and staff across campus. This service allows you to print, copy, and scan quickly and securely from any multi-function device (MFDs) on campus by tapping your ID card on the reader.

Earlier this month, we conducted a successful pilot period in the Technology department and the Library. We expect to activate ID card readers on all remaining MFDs between May 3rd-5th.

This change provides faculty and staff with the same flexibility that CampusPrint provides to students: a networked, secure, campus-wide solution that allows you to get your documents when and where you need them. With tap-access printing, there’s also no need to cancel print jobs you may have sent accidentally or decided not to print.

Please note that while this feature will be available on all MFDs, you can continue to print directly to MFDs in your office or department without tapping your ID. Copying and scanning at MFDs will require tap-access at all times.

In May, Simmons Technology will provide drop-in training sessions and project manager Roy Balcom ([email protected]) will work with individual departments to coordinate trainings, as requested.

Over the last month, Simmons Technology has seen a sharp increase in spam containing malicious attachments. Opening infected files that you receive via email can install unwanted and dangerous software on your device. Some files even contain malware that will lock you out of your device and demand a ransom in exchange for unlocking it.

We don’t want to see anyone at Simmons end up in these types of situations. Here’s what we’re doing—and what you can do—to stay safe:

• We adjusted Gmail’s spam filtering tool to enhance our ability to detect and quarantine spam and malware.
• We are available to help you identify potential problems with attachments.
• You should be cognizant of who has sent you an email with an attachment and the name and file type of the attachment. If it looks unusual or suspicious, don’t open it.
• You should install antivirus software on your computer. If you’re using a Simmons-owned computer, antivirus software is already installed and running.
• You can learn to look for signs that your device has been compromised by a virus or malware.

If you have questions about information security or concerns about a specific email or attachment, please contact the Service Desk at 617-521-2222.