Bakersfield College

Bakersfield College's emergency notification system, called BC Alert, will enable us to communicate with you quickly in the event of an emergency. The BC Alert system will alert and provide pertinent information and instructions to students, faculty and staff via voice, e-mail and text messages to the phone numbers and e-mail addresses on file. The system uses CONNECT-Ed, which is a web-based mass notification system that sends emergency messages instantly and simultaneously to telephones, mobile phones, wireless devices and email addresses uploaded into the CONNECT-Ed system by KCCD. The BC Alert System can also send a text message to your cell phone. Standard text messaging rates will apply. Return to top

A BC Alert will be sent only to inform you of a very serious incident or situation, a campus or site closing, or some other event that requires rapid, wide-scale notification to the community. Examples of such events would be a campus shooting, bomb threat, hazardous materials spills, flood, earthquake, or fire. Test messages will also be sent approximately once a semester. Return to top

Your contact information is automatically loaded into the Connect-Ed system using the data you have previously provided for admissions and registration and stored in our database. It is important that you keep this information up-to-date so that you will receive Alert messages. Return to top

Log into MyBanWeb and select Personal Information from the menu. You can update your contact information at any time. Return to top

You should check and update your Home and Cellular phone numbers and not Opt Out of receiving Alert text messages. Return to top

The contact information submitted for the BC Alert system will be kept private and confidential. It will not be shared with other entities, but used only by Bakersfield College to communicate with you in the case of a school closing or emergency. Return to top

While on the call, you can replay the message by pressing the star key (*) at the end of the message. You may also check your email to locate the link for that message. Return to top

The system does its best to detect whether it has reached a live person or an answering machine. Sometimes loud ambient noises may cause the system to loop. If this happens, use the mute feature on your phone or move to a quieter location to prevent the message from looping or repeating. Return to top

When Bakersfield College sends out a call using the BC Alert System, it will always display caller ID information and the phone number 888-522-3932. Return to top

Alert text messages will come from 23177 or 63079. Return to top

Yes, standard text messaging fees will apply. Return to top

After you add your text messaging phone number to the BC Alert System, you should receive a confirmation message the following business day. Return to top

BC Alert: You are now confirmed to receive alerts from us. For more info text reply "HELP" or "STOP BC Alert" to opt-out.

For T-Mobile subscribers only, the following message is sent instructing you to perform an action:

BC Alert: You have asked to receive SMS alerts from us. You must text reply Y BCALERT to confirm this request.

After the T-Mobile subscriber sends the text reply, the system will send the following message: BC Alert: You are now confirmed to receive alerts from us. More info text reply HELP or STOP BCALERT to opt-out. Return to top

Please check with your mobile phone provider to find out if your device accepts text messages. You may also want to check with your provider to see if text messaging has been enabled. You may need to subscribe to a text messaging plan in order to receive or reply to text messages. Return to top

No. If your SMS phone was already submitted to our database, you should be confirmed to receive SMS alerts from us. However, you may also test to find out by texting the word "SUBSCRIBE BCALERT " to 23177 and you will receive a reply with the following:

BC Alert: This phone number has already been opted in. More info text reply "HELP" or "STOP BCALERT " to opt out. Return to top

Although you can chose to Opt Out of receiving Emergency Notification messages, we strongly encourage you not to Opt Out. In an emergency situation, the ALERT system will attempt to contact you with important information via all the available communication methods including voice messages to the phone numbers you have provided, email and text messaging. Depending on where you are at and what you are doing at the time the messages are sent, a Text message could be the best communication mode to alert you of the emergency condition.

If you do wish to Opt Out of receiving Emergency Notification Text messages from the ALERT system, there are two ways in which you can Opt Out.

1. In MyBanWeb, you can check the "Do not send me any emergency notification messages" checkbox when updating your telephone numbers and emergency notification preferences. This is the recommended method for opting out.
2. Using your cell phone, you can Opt Out by sending "STOP BCALERT " to 23177. If you Opt Out using your cell phone, you should also update your cell phone record in MyBanWeb as described above to avoid any confusion. When you Opt Out via your cell phone, our records are not updated; however, you will not receive ALERT Text messages. Return to top