Still haven’t made plans for St. Paddy’s day? You’re in luck! See pg. 36 Commentary:
9
Louder than a Bomb
Online exclusive video
Patent law reform See pg. 35
MONDAY MARCH 11, 2013
VOLUME 48, ISSUE 22
College responds to security malfunction by Tyler Eagle Assistant Campus Editor • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Top photo JERMAINE LEE. Bottom photo JULIE KIM
These photos were taken by students during the false “violent intruder” alert sent to the entire campus March 5.
PANIC STRUCK THE campus March 5, causing students, faculty and staff to hide under desks, some sending out concerned tweets and texts to their loved ones, all because of a false alarm. At approximately 11:30 a.m., AlertWave, the college’s mass-notification system, malfunctioned and announced there was a violent intruder on campus instead of sending a weather advisory about the college closing at 3 p.m. because of a snowstorm, according to Robert Koverman, associate vice president of Safety & Security. Koverman was notified by college officials about the closing, and said he ran a successful test message through AlertWave in the Security Command Center regarding the school closing. However, the wrong message was disseminated when he posted the actual alert, he told The Chronicle. “We knew within seconds that the false message was broadcast within all the buildings because we immediately got calls from our security officers,” Koverman said. To notify the campus of the false alarm, the college sent an email at 11:50 a.m. rather than using AlertWave because security feared the system would malfunction again and send the same false message, according to Alicia
Berg, vice president of Campus Environment. “We didn’t want to make things worse by sending out the same bad message,” Berg said. “Who knows what else would have happened?” Following the incident, the administration said it is displeased with AlertWave and is considering alternative contractors but will be cautious when choosing because they want to be thorough, Berg said. “If we decide we need to install a new system, we want to do it correctly,” Berg said. “We certainly don’t want a repeat of this again.” According to a security official at Benedictine University, a college that also uses AlertWave, the college has never had a malfunction with the system. Berg said that in the event of a real violent intruder, AlertWave only sends out a message to the affected building. Send Word Now, the system that uses email and phone messages, would be used to alert the rest of the campus of the situation, Koverman said. Security officers would be posted outside the affected building to keep students from entering, he added. On March 8, Berg sent out an email to the campus community apologizing for the malfunction. According to her, campus safety xx SEE INTRUDER, PG. 8
Safer sex texts spawn debate
Website permits sharing STD test results, though some think site may lack protection by Doug Pitorak Assistant Sports & Health Editor
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Major in wisecracking Carolina Sanchez THE CHRONICLE
Students from Michael Guelman’s Columbia comedy class rehearse March 7 at the DeMaat studio Theatre at Second City.
The nation’s first comedy writing and performance major coming to Columbia by Megan Purazrang Assistant Campus Editor • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
WHAT DO YOU get when you cross Columbia’s Theater Department and Second City? Columbia’s new Comedy Performance and
CAMPUS
Story Week peek • page 3
Writing degree. Ushering in the first program of its kind in the country, Columbia is teaming up with Second City, 1616 N. Wells St., the venerable comedy club and school of improvisation, to bring the new four-year degree to the Theater Department beginning fall 2013, according to John Green, interim dean xx SEE COMEDY, PG. 10
SPORTS & HEALTH
Illinois bee study • page 13
IN HOPES OF reducing both the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and the awkwardness of asking a potential hookup for his or her testing history, entrepreneur Ramin Bastani took to the Web in 2010 to create Qpid.me, a test result-sharing website that has recently prompted security concerns. Bastani said users can create a free account with Qpid.me and request their healthcare provider to supply their most recent test results. Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, healthcare providers are required to fax the results to Qpid.me within a time frame that varies by state, which is 30 days for Illinois.
ARTS & CULTURE
Pole dancing athletes • page 22
According to Bastani, Qpid.me grants access to a testing locator that identifies the top clinics in California, where Qpid.me was launched. Bastani said the locator, which also allows users to review clinics, is set to launch in Chicago in April. “We’re a radically different approach to STD prevention using technology,” Bastani said. “Our whole goal is to make that awkward, ‘Have you been tested?’ conversation just a little bit easier, and we want to empower our users to make better sexual decisions.” Qpid.me, which is funded by private investors, allows users to share their results with members of their secure network via text message or an online link. Bastani said he cannot disclose an exact number of users, but he said Qpid.me has delivered “thousands and thousand of results.” According to Bastani, an individual’s profile cannot be searched on
METRO
Alderman evicts at-risk residents • page 37
xx SEE QPID.ME, PG. 16
INDEX
Campus .......................................................3 Sports & Health ..........................................13 Arts & Culture ..............................................19 Commentary ..............................................34 Metro ........................................................37