At least 37 shootings have taken place on school grounds this year, according to the Washington Post, which is causing campuses nationwide to re-evaluate their safety measures.
On Oct. 1, a 26-year-old man opened fire at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, killing 10 and wounding seven.
In light of this event, Dean of Student Life Neil Arter said Oklahoma Christian University administration, faculty and staff strive to prevent this type of tragedy by keeping the campus safe and secure.
“When it comes to safety on campus we know that everyone, including students, have a responsibility to be aware of their surroundings and safety,” Arter said.
Some safety procedures include routine lock-down drills to ensure student knowledge of how to act in a situation like this.
“There have been situations in the past where they’ve put the campus on lockdown,” senior Colin Prevatt said. “They all send us texts and emails in order to inform us what the situation is and how to act accordingly, I think that’s well communicated to us.”
Oklahoma Christian has also made modifications to their security in past years.
“Over the last couple of years we have added drills and committees to be prepared for emergencies,” Arter said. “Knowing this I still do not feel like our campus is educated enough. In many ways we are relying on people’s basic instincts to put our plan in place.”
Despite the modifications, however, students sometimes feel they are not always informed of the correct security procedures, according to sophomore Erin Hairston.
“I know a lot of people who don’t really know the policies and protocol here,” Hairston said.
Security can be increased through constant communication, according to Arter.
“Better communication and awareness is our greatest way to make an impact,” Arter said. “We need to keep talking when we see something out of the ordinary.”
Prevatt said he thinks Oklahoma Christian is a safe campus.
“Campus is well lit at night, I just feel like there’s no evident threats,” Prevatt said. “They’ve got security on campus, I feel like the campus makes measures in order to make us feel safe.”
In a data analysis by Harvard School of Public Health, a timeline of mass shootings over the past 30 years shows that mass shootings have increased throughout the years, and there has been a significant increase beginning around 2012.
“Higher [education] is a pretty close and compassionate community,” Arter said. “If any type of tragedy happens in our region, we offer support and services. It might be that we can offer prayer and encouragement, or maybe they need some of our staff. Either way, we want to help.”
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