Oregon State University has received state approval to purchase an emergency text messaging program to notify students of on-campus emergencies.

The system — which would use personal cell phones to alert students if a gunman was on campus — could be in place this fall, and will be shared by at least four other schools, university officials said. Faculty and staff could sign up for the service, which also could be used for other emergencies such as an earthquake or severe weather.

“We need this so badly,” said Curt Pederson, chief information officer for OSU and the Oregon University System.

“It’s about the safety of our students,” said Shay Dakan, OSU director of network services.

Partners in the system — who finalized commitments to its purchase this week — include Western Oregon University, Eastern Oregon University, Southern Oregon University and the Oregon Institute of Technology.

Portland Community College also is considering partnering in the program, said Dana Haynes, spokesman for the community college. The Portland school has about 84,000 students on three campuses and seven learning centers.

“We really would like to find a system that is fast and reliable,” Haynes added. “Until we know more about the cost, we’re not committed.”

“We’re certainly going to move forward, even if it is without them,” Jon Dolan, OSU assistant director of network services.

OSU had been looking for ways to improve emergency communications even before April 2007, when a gunman killed 33 people at Virginia Tech in the worst mass shooting in American history.

“These conversations took on an immediacy after Virginia Tech,” said Todd Simmons, assistant vice president for advancement at OSU.

The technology will cost $160,000. OSU’s share of the purchase price is about $43,000, about $5,000 less than it would have cost it to purchase the program by itself, said Derek Abrams, an operating systems network analyst for OSU and the Oregon University System.

Pederson said OSU and the other regional universities are prepared to pay for the emergency text messaging program, but hope the Oregon University System will help with funding.

Banding together also provides savings for training and a shared base of knowledge, officials said. Then there are the other advantages of being a big client.

“We’ll have a lot more say when it comes to future features and deployment than somebody working as an individual,” Pederson said.

The University of Oregon and Portland State University are looking at their own separate systems, officials said.

OSU and the other regional universities also have extended an offer to the Oregon Independent Colleges Association to join the partnership, Pederson said. The association includes 19 schools such as the University of Portland, Reed College and Willamette University.

“More partners mean lower prices for everybody. If it’s convenient for them and convenient to us, that’s great. … But we’re going to move forward and get a system in place,” Dolan said.

Kyle Odegard covers Oregon State University. He can be contacted at kyle.odegard@lee.net or 758-9523.