About ISU Alert

The ISU Alert system quickly notifies Iowa State University students, faculty and staff of potentially dangerous situations.

ISU Alert complements other forms of emergency notification, including warning sirens, public address announcements, the university homepage, personal communication and signage.

Iowa State University provides the ISU Alert service at no charge. Users who opt-in for text messages or calls to a cell phone may incur a fee, depending on their wireless provider.

Alert messages

ISU's Department of Public Safety initiates emergency notifications. Alert messages are sent from:

  • Email: ISU Alerts (isualerts@iastate.edu)
  • Text: 226787 or 67283
  • Phone: 515-294-4111
    • If the line is busy, ISU Alert will try two more times.
    • If the call goes to voicemail, ISU Alert will leave a message.
  • Note: Add these numbers to your contacts under "ISU Alert."
     

Content

  • You will typically receive at least two messages via each of the notification methods you have specified: an initial alert informing you of the emergency; and subsequent messages with more information, and/or an "all clear" indicating the incident has been resolved.
  • Check the ISU Alert homepage and university social media accounts for updates during an emergency.

Verify your ISU Alert contact information

Iowa State students, faculty and staff may receive alerts via a phone call (cell or landline), text message and email. The information you provide is not shared or used for anything but the ISU Alert notification system. Directions for signing up or changing your contact preferences are included below and in a Service Now knowledge base article.

  • Sign in to Workday
  • Search for "ISU Alert" and select "ISU Alert Custom Task"
  • Add the optional mobile phone number and email address to receive notifications
    • ISU emails are automatically included to comply with federal mandates
    • Work phone numbers for ISU employees are included
    • Phone numbers with routing messages (for example, "Press 1 for John") will not receive alerts
  • Delete information or leave the field blank for contact methods you do not wish to use
  • Changes take effect each evening (Monday through Friday, excluding holidays)

​​​​​​​Update your emergency contacts

  • Sign in to Workday
  • Select "Contact" on your profile page
  • Select "Emergency Contacts"
  • Provide contact information for up to five people. In an emergency, officials will start at the top of your list and keep trying until they reach someone.

FAQ: Eligibility and troubleshooting

Only Iowa State University students, faculty and staff with "active" status are eligible to receive ISU Alert messages. Review your ISU Alert settings in AccessPlus to make sure notification info (text, phone, email) is up to date. 

  • Students: Enrolled in at least one ISU course for a semester, and at least one of the following:
    • 10 or fewer days prior to the start of enrolled semester
    • 7 or fewer days past the end of enrolled semester
    • Enrolled class is in session
    • Enrolled summer course in session
  • Faculty and staff: Currently employed
  • Temporary and student employees: Paid and within two months of last paycheck

Parents, the general public, and inactive status students, faculty and staff should refer to the ISU Alert homepage and university social media channels for emergency status and updates.