Emergency warning system installed at Technology Center

The old slogan for Tennessee Technology Centers, ‘It’s What We Do,’ aptly describes the cooperative project that resulted in an efficient emergency notification system for TTC McMinnville.

Thanks, in large part, to volunteer work performed by five members of Mark Guertin’s electronics technology class at a savings of almost $1,800, all classrooms, offices, break rooms, and even breezeways are connected by wall-mounted speakers and/or telephone speakers, which will come in handy whenever an emergency occurs.

‘They got some real-world experience,’ Guertin said of the project that used the services of students Cody Mills, Charles Clayton, Brandon Willoughby, Dan Wells and Will Eddins.

A crew from Ben Lomand Communications connected phones to the amplifier that electronics technology students installed. Peggy Layman-Allen, coordinator of financial services, keyed in the code that allows each telephone to transmit emergency messages simultaneously through phone speakers and wall-mounted speakers.

‘OK, so maybe some students and instructors grew a bit weary of the ‘test, test, test’ mantra,’ said Mike Garrison, coordinator of student services, who suggested the project. ‘And maybe a few nearly dropped their surgical instruments when the sound blared unexpectedly. But one day of interruptions is a small price to pay for a superior emergency warning system that hopefully we’ll seldom use.’

A major concern was to ensure students, faculty and staff could hear messages regardless of where they are on campus. With that concern in mind, the electronics technology crew was careful to see that volume controls are operational from both the speakers and the amplifier.

Now TTC McMinnville students, faculty and staff are assured that emergency notices travel at the speed of sound.

‘Campus violence has become a shocking and deadly part of what most of us experienced as a serene and peaceful lifestyle,’ said Andy Forrester, TTC McMinnville director. ‘We didn’t go to college to get involved in fatal shootings. We went to learn, to have fun and to meet new friends.

‘The General Assembly has asked campuses statewide to examine their safety plans. We want students here to have a sense of safety while they are here working to transform their lives.’