The 33 deaths at Virginia Tech University on Monday at the hands of a student there have raised questioned about how universities can communicate with students in an emergency.

Both Slippery Rock University and Butler County Community College have several ways to get in touch with their students.

BC3 uses its own e-mail system to alert students when classes are canceled. It also has used a telephone message to broadcast news to students in the past.

Susan Changnon, BC3 spokeswoman, said students all have a "mybc3" e-mail address. The e-mail system was first used in the fall semester, and with encouragement more and more students are using the e-mail address.

The college used a subscription e-mail service to alert students when classes were canceled because of poor weather.

She said the college can send a broadcast e-mail message to the students and faculty in the event of an emergency.

Changnon said the college would like to make student portals, anchored by e-mail, one of the main communication methods.

"We're totally a commuter campus... so communication is always an issue," she said.

In the past, the college used a mass telephone message to call students at home and on their cell phones. The college used a company to call students about registration deadlines.

The college is also considering setting up a MySpace page or Facebook page to share information.

The college doesn't have a system like that at Penn State that could text message students.

BC3 has 3,800 full-time students and 15,000 people who take non-credit classes.

Similar measures are in place at Slippery Rock University for notifying students in times of crisis.

The university uses its Web page, e-mail and has the capability to leave telephone messages for students and staff members.

But since the Virginia Tech incident this week, SRU officials have been looking at a new system, including downloading messages to a variety of technology used by students. The system, which has been promoted this week by Pennsylvania state officials, would interface with cell phones, handheld computers and other forms of communication, according to John Bonando, assistant vice president of student services.

"It's a way to send instant messages to all students,"he said.

Costs and computer capabilities are factors that need to be researched before using the system, he said.

In the meantime, SRU is prepared for crisis, including one of a mass nature such as at Virginia Tech, according to Bonando.

All campus and surrounding police departments follow a detailed emergency plan. Training and updates are provided regularly.

The plan follows guidelines from the National Incident Management System, which governs all state and municipal police forces, said Bonando.

"That way, any trooper who comes in can follow the same guidelines," he said. "That's critical in an emergency."

Maps, evacuation plans and transportation details are just some sections of the emergency plan, which is in a binder at least 8 inches thick.

Evacuations, for example, aren't easy to determine, said Bonando.

"It depends on the circumstances,"he said. "The goal is to save lives and avoid injury."

Though Virginia Tech officials have been criticized for not evacuating campus sooner, Bonando said what they did was right.

Evacuating the campus may put more students in harms way where a shooter is concerned, he said. The resulting panic could cause additional injuries.