The University of Arizona has launched a new campus safety app that centralizes all of the school’s emergency resources in one place and delivers real-time alerts to students, faculty and staff.

SafeCats, which has been available for download since early August, is designed to improve access to emergency services and provide peace of mind across campus.

Since the start of the fall 2025 semester, the University of Arizona has reported several notable incidents on campus, highlighting ongoing safety concerns.

On Aug. 19, a juvenile suspect was arrested in connection with a stabbing at the Main Library. The next day, UA police reported an aggravated assault in the area of  6th Street and 2nd Avenue, detaining a suspect shortly after.

On Sept. 9, UA police responded to a serious car crash on campus and on Sept. 13, reported an aggravated assault in the area of Speedway and Campbell.

Later, on Oct. 1, UAPD responded to a disorderly conduct incident on campus, and a bicycle theft was reported the next day, following a series of attempted and completed E-bike and E-scooter thefts between August 18 and Sept. 1.

Campus officials say these incidents underscore the importance of the newly launched SafeCats app, which they hope will enhance response times during emergencies and contribute to a safer campus environment.

Beyond official statements, students themselves are noticing the benefits of the app in their daily lives.

Freshman psychology major Teagan Ethington said the app helps him feel safer, providing both ease of use and peace of mind for him and his friends.

All of the university’s safety resources are accessible through SafeCats, with users receiving emergency push alerts directly through their cell provider, allowing for real-time UAlerts.

“We almost always have our phones with us, and so being able to just pull out your phone and hit a button and have emergency services on campus know what’s going on and where you’re at, I think it’s incredibly important,” Ethington said.

The app also includes features like real-time GPS location sharing with UAPD, silent emergency alerts, and direct access to campus support resources.

“I (like) being able to know that if I ever needed it, I could very easily and very quickly contact emergency services on campus,” Ethington said.

Students can log into the app with their NetID to access all available features, according to the UA Office of Public Safety website.

It’s important that users enable location services in the app and on their device in order to share their location with UAPD in the event of an emergency.

“I’ve always been trying to get as much information to the community as efficiently as possible,” Chief Safety Officer Steve Patterson told Tucson Spotlight.

Patterson said the app was developed in response to feedback from students, staff, and faculty who wanted faster access to safety information, right at their fingertips.

The previous applications, UAlert and LiveSafe, communicated with one another but were managed by separate manufacturers.

“They were not as efficient as we would have liked,” Patterson said.

With the university’s contracts for both UAlerts and LiveSafe nearing expiration, a national search was launched to identify mass notification vendors suitable for UA.

“One of the requirements was that we wanted to have an innovative, robust app,” Patterson said.

Work on the app officially started over the summer, after UA partnered with Rave Mobile Safety, the company providing SafeCats.

Looking ahead, Patterson said the development team is exploring ways to add more functionality to the app.

“We are currently working on additional (features) that we could potentially do,” he said. “Some of this is integration with some of the athletics events, so a little more available information for people who come to the campus to watch football games or basketball games.”

Trevor Gribble is a journalism major at the University of Arizona and Tucson Spotlight intern. Contact him at tjgribble@arizona.edu.

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