Iowa State has become one of a handful of universities in the country to be declared StormReady.

In September, the university became the ninth university in the country and the first in Iowa to receive the designation.

Angela Jewett, program coordinator for Iowa State’s environmental health and safety department, was one of the faculty members in charge of the application process.

In order to meet the designation, Jewett said, the university had to meet six guidelines.

She said the department initiated an effort for every building and department on campus to develop a severe weather notification plan that identifies safe shelter areas.

In addition to the plan, Jewett said building staff are working to update all emergency evacuation maps posted in their buildings. These maps illustrate fire evacuation routes.

Notification plans and the building maps are available on the department’s Web site.

“The biggest thing that impacted the application was the placement of 22 … weather radios on campus,” Jewett said.

The radio purchases were made possible by grants written by Story and Marshall counties. Nine hundred radios were placed throughout Story County, including the 200 placed around campus, Jewett said.

Severe weather spotter training classes were also offered. Jewett said officers from the Department of Public Safety on campus were a majority of those trained as storm spotters, since the DPS dispatch office serves as the 24-hour warning point for Iowa State.

The process took about a year to complete.

In May 2004, the Iowa State Center had to put part of its plan into practice when an audience of several hundred had to move into storm shelters during an evening dance recital.

Jewett said everyone was able to move to the storm shelter in six minutes.

“The university shows they take preparedness for severe weather seriously, which can be good for recruitment,” said Jeff Johnson warning coordination meteorologist with the Des Moines branch of the National Weather Service.

Amy Christy, senior in meteorology, said she was glad to see Iowa State had taken such steps.

“As a meteorology major, I understand how quickly severe weather can arise and how important it is to notify people,” Christy said. “It makes me feel a lot safer as a student to know the university has a plan in case severe weather does arise.”

Jewett said the department is planning to work in the residence halls on improving sign postings and notification plans, as well.