What is Topper Text?

St. Edward’s University has invested in an information alert system that will allow university administrators to send important information to faculty and staff members and students in an emergency situation. Topper Text delivers text messages on a cell phone or by e-mail. In order to receive text messages from the university in an emergency situation, you must sign up for the service.

Topper Text will not replace other forms of communication, but will be a supplement to the university’s other emergency notification processes such as the St. Edward’s University Hotline (416-5800) and the St. Edward’s web site. Note that all text messages from St. Edward's University will originate from 44929 which is the short code for our vendor.

Topper Text Changing (10/30/08)

Watch for announcemens regarding changes to Topper Text. We will be moving to a new system for text messaging provided by Rave Wireless. Access to Topper Text will no longer be through Blackboard. The Rave Wireless system will allow you to specify multiple cell phone numbers and multiple e-mail addresses to receive emergency text messages. Until the new system is up we have removed access to the old Topper Text system so that we may move the current subscribers to the Rave system. Emergency messages may still be sent by authorized staff.

How much will it cost to receive emergency messages?

Topper Text is free to St. Edward’s University students, faculty and staff members. However, if you choose to receive text messages by cell phone, there may be a small fee. Since cellular plans vary, we recommend that you check with your provider to see if they will charge you to receive Topper Text messages. Most plans charge a nominal fee.

This service is strictly on an opt-in basis. If you sign up for Topper Text you will automatically be added to the St. Edward's Broadcast group which will be used for notifications of emergency situations. You can choose whether you want to recieve text messages on your cell phone or email or both.