In response to the shootings at Virginia Tech in April, a panel created by Virginia Gov. Timothy Kaine released a report last week detailing more than 90 ways universities and police officers can make college campuses safer.

University of Michigan administrators said the report's findings are important and there's always room for improvement, but they maintain that the University has developed its own crisis management system that is capable of handling a similar crisis.

The panel's recommendations focus on security, emergency preparedness and mental health. The suggestions include installing security cameras near the entrances to campus buildings, creating a cell phone text messaging alert system to immediately inform students about a crisis situation and improving the communication of information about troubled and potentially violent students between mental health services and the school's administration.

Diane Brown, Department of Public Safety spokeswoman, said the report is relevant but the University faces different challenges because it's integrated into the city of Ann Arbor as opposed to being set apart from the city geographically or with walls or gates.

"We are an open campus," Brown said. "Can one lock down the University? No."

Brown said that some of the panel's recommendations are already in place at the University. Weapons are already illegal on campus, for example, and the University trains police officers to deal with active shooters.

She said some of the other measures, like the text messaging alert system, appear to make sense, but that it's too early to determine whether they are feasible or necessary.

Some schools already have text messaging alert systems. The College of Notre Dame of Maryland, for example, sent a text message to students on Saturday after a report of an attempted abduction on campus.

At the University of Colorado at Boulder, thousands of students rushed to sign up for the new text message warning system there after a stabbing in August.

Although the University doesn't have a text messaging alert system, DPS could assign officers to drive down every street in Ann Arbor playing an emergency message, if necessary, Brown said.

Brown said her biggest concern is that students don't take safety issues seriously. She cited a fire that broke out in the Art and Architecture Building on North Campus the week of the Virginia Tech shootings. When the fire alarm went off, students didn't leave.

"We do need people to be more aware of these systems," she said. "If they're going to ignore the alerts, it's not going to help the situation."

The report also addresses the ways mental health services can help prevent tragedies. Although Brown and other University administrators said some crises are impossible to prevent - particularly those involving a violently disturbed person - they added that the University's Counseling and Psychological Services office plays a vital role in keeping campus safe.

CAPS director Todd Sevig said CAPS is expanding its outreach with a program called "Question, Persuade, Refer," which trains students and staff to identify people who might need counseling or may be a danger to themselves or others.

Dean of Students Sue Eklund said some of CAPS's programs - like a hotline students can call if they think a peer needs immediate help - could be better publicized. She said many students don't know these services exist.

The report encouraged high schools to pass mental health information to colleges, which is illegal in Michigan. Sevig said that while CAPS can help identify individuals who may need counseling and provide help, students must be the ones to act.

"Let's use Virginia Tech to help clear up some issues," Sevig said. "If you think your fellow student needs help, do something."