How does Early Alert affect student privacy?
Early Alert helps protect your privacy by providing a secure way for concerns to be identified, coordinated and responded to.
Information is restricted to the Early Alert team, as well as the advisors who are responsible for coordinating information and providing outreach. The information is shared on a need-to-know basis, meaning that only the amount of information needed to effectively support you is shared with those directly involved in offering the support.
The system is closed and all records are kept confidential. Faculty and staff logging a concern are not able to see if other concerns have been raised in the past.
If you have concerns about your privacy, please contact the Early Alert team for more information.
What would prompt faculty or staff to use Early Alert?
Faculty and staff are encouraged to reach out and offer support when they are concerned about your academic performance or wellbeing. This might include times when the quality of your work suddenly decreases, when you stop attending classes regularly, or if you appear to be distressed.
Ideally, outreach would occur in these situations with or without a program like Early Alert being in place. With Early Alert, the support that is offered is simply enhanced.
What if I don’t want to be part of Early Alert?
You cannot “opt out” of Early Alert, but you can choose whether you would like to accept support. With the exception of situations where someone’s safety is at risk, you have the right to accept or decline the support being offered.
Is this a form of surveillance?
Part of having a caring community means that when we notice signs of difficulty in others, we reach out and offer support.
Early Alert is not meant to be a form of surveillance for the purpose of evaluating or reprimanding students. Instead, it complements the way that faculty and staff are already looking out for the wellbeing of students and reaching out when they notice that a student may need assistance.
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