A good start

Senator Skelos is heading in the right direction here with his "Campus Emergency Alert System."

I hope the DCJS will now begin to incorporate some of the ideas promoted here and here and that the state will not stop at this project but will create a simple emergency alert system for all entities in New York State.

Here's a recent article on an SMS based alert system. There are a ton of good systems out there. The trick is to make sure the state requires an open API so that any system or systems utilized don't become the "only" system or systems the state can use in the long term. Additionally, any alert system developed must operate on multiple platforms.

Hats off to Senator Skelos for getting the ball rolling.