When is it a good idea for a university to spend $750,000 on something it hopes it’ll never have to use? When it can save lives.

The University is spending that much money on implementing the Campus Alert Notification Network (CANN). Most of CANN is already operational, and a building lock-down system is forthcoming. The University hasn’t had to use it yet, and hopefully it stays that way.

On Wednesday, at St. John’s University’s Queens Campus, a gunman with a rifle was apprehended by public safety officers and turned over to the NYPD.

While this does not directly affect the University, it was only 12 miles away. Also, it demonstrated the usefulness of an emergency response plan that includes automated text and voice messages to students. Just as the University introduced such a program this semester, so did St. John’s. The messages alerted students to lock their doors and stay inside, out of harm’s way.

No one was injured at St. John’s, but on Sept. 21 at Delaware State University (DSU), two freshman students were shot over an argument. Within 15 minutes, DSU officials alerted students of the emergency and locked down most buildings on campus. DSU learned from the Virginia Tech massacre that is it necessary to secure campus and alert all students of a shooting immediately, even if it seems like an isolated incident. DSU has not invested in an automated alert system; this tragedy demonstrates the need for one.

Hopefully, CANN at the University will only ever be needed to alert students of severe weather, and a shooting will never occur to justify the cost.