New Focus on Campus Safety 1 Year After Virginia Shootings: Keys Are Alerts, Communication

By Diane Huber and Venice Buhain, The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

Apr. 16–The shooting rampage at Virginia Tech a year ago that took the lives of 32 students and teachers led to a reassessment of college safety and security measures at Thurston County’s three colleges.

“All of us in campus law enforcement took a look at our procedures after Virginia Tech,” said Ed Sorger, police chief at The Evergreen State College.

Some high-tech measures already are in place at Saint Martin’s University, Evergreen and South Puget Sound Community College. Others are on the way. They include:

–Text message alert systems at all three colleges.

–Loudspeaker systems, which are being considered at Evergreen and Saint Martin’s.

–A lock-and-key-card system, which is being installed in the new science building at SPSCC.

There also has been increased emphasis on the mental health of college students.

Campuses have developed better interdepartmental communication to identify troubled students before they harm themselves or others.

After the Virginia Tech massacre, students and teachers told reporters and investigators that they had been frightened by shooter Seung-Hui Cho’s violent writing and anti-social behavior before he killed 32 students and staff members and injured many others, then turned the gun on himself.

Counseling services existed at SPSCC before the Virginia Tech massacre, spokeswoman Kellie Purce Braseth said.

“But like everyone, the tragedy at Virginia Tech heightened our awareness. Since the incident, the counselors consult with each other more and make a point of considering who else on campus may need to be made aware of something, all in an effort to both head off any potential problems and to serve students better,” she said.

As a direct result of Virginia Tech, Saint Martin’s created a behavioral intervention team to help staff and faculty members recognize warning signs. Students and faculty members are asked to report to the team any alarming behavior, such as something written in an assignment, overheard, or seen on social networking Web sites, Saint Martin’s spokeswoman Jennifer Fellinger said. The team then evaluates the concern to see what action is necessary.

“If there is a student that is raising red flags, anybody and everybody is responsible for reporting it to the team,” she said.

Sorger said Evergreen police regularly meet with its mental health professionals, staff and faculty members, and they communicate with each other if a student makes threats.

“We can mitigate that stuff before it happens,” Sorger said. “Not that there’s anything that’s going to fix it all.”

Technology plans

All three colleges have started new text message alert programs, for incidents as varied as a school closure because of bad weather or campus violence.

In January, SPSCC started using the e2Campus system at the cost of $2,000 for 2,000 users. So far, about 600 students, teachers and staff members have signed up for the system, which sends mass warnings via text messages and e-mails.

“E2Campus was used four times this winter for campus closures,” said Lonnie Hatman, director of security at the college.

Saint Martin’s this month started using a campus text message alert system, and 243 users have registered.

Evergreen has used the FlashAlert.net electronic emergency-message system for text messages, though cell phone reception is spotty on the suburban campus and inside its concrete buildings, Sorger said.

SPSCC also plans to install a video monitor system that can relay news quickly in public areas of the campus, Hatman said.

Schools also are looking to older forms of communication, with Saint Martin’s and Evergreen looking into installing or expanding the capabilities of their alarm systems.

There also are new ways to partner with local law enforcement. Saint Martin’s plans to conduct an emergency drill with Lacey Police in May. Evergreen will spend $80,000 for equipment that will better connect its dispatch system to the county emergency dispatch system, Sorger said.

New emphasis

An April 3 assault near the Saint Martin’s campus, in which a man used an electric stun device to attack a woman walking on the trails in the wooded area near the main campus, also heightened concerns about campus security.

The Office of Safety and Security increased patrols in the days after the attack. Staff members also organized safety meetings, and Fellinger issued a campuswide e-mail reminding students to walk in groups and use the campus shuttle or escort service.

Student body president Whitney Kippes, a senior graduating in December, said her confidence in campus safety was “shaken a little bit” by the assault.

On the other hand, the incident prompted students and faculty members to think about areas where they could improve safety, such as added lighting along wooded trails.

Kippes said the behavioral response team and text message warnings are good first steps to improving safety. The student government has urged students to sign up for the text alerts.

“I think it will be a really great way to let students feel safer and more aware of what’s going on on campus,” she said.

Todd Denny, an Olympia-based author who presents workshops on how to stop bullying behavior and rape to high schools and colleges nationwide, said that prevention takes education and not just tighter security.

“It’s not more security on campus; it’s not more security cameras; it’s not metal detectors,” Denny said at a Tuesday talk at Evergreen. “It’s examining behaviors.”

Denny was at the college to discuss rape prevention, but he also discussed the behaviors that inadvertently lead to campus violence, such as the Virginia Tech and Columbine High School shootings.

He said a strong peer educator program supported by the campus administration can help spot students who might have issues that could lead to campus violence.

“These brilliant students (are) the first line of prevention,” he said after the talk. “They are the first ones to witness these situations.”

Venice Buhain and Diane Huber cover education for The Olympian. Buhain can be reached at 360-754-5445 or vbuhain@theolympian.com. Huber can be reached at 360-357-0204 or dhuber@theolympian.com.

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Copyright (c) 2008, The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

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