Crist Creates School-Safety Task Force

By Stephanie Garry, The Miami Herald

May 1–TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Charlie Crist created a task force Monday to study issues of mental health, security and emergency response at Florida’s colleges and universities, after visiting with a top federal official who is touring the country in response to the Virginia Tech massacre to collect suggestions for a report to the president.

The task force, which includes representatives from law enforcement, social service and education agencies and students, will report to Crist by May 24 so the governor can pass their recommendations to Mike Leavitt, the federal secretary for Health and Human Services. Leavitt and Crist discussed Monday the challenge of securing open campuses where students expect freedom and privacy.

‘A BALANCE TO STRIKE’

"There’s a balance to strike," Crist said. "It’s a learning time for young people, but nothing’s more important than making sure they’re safe."

But two options that the state universities proposed to guard against attacks appear unlikely to pass as the clock runs down on the last week of the legislative session.

The state board that oversees higher education in Florida made a lastminute request for an additional $3.5 million to beef up police and improve communication. They’ve also asked lawmakers to create a technology fee, which they say could help improve infrastructure and reduce the time it takes to send out mass messages to warn students of danger.

"That’s a real primary safety issue," said Sen. Al Lawson, a Tallahassee Democrat and sponsor of the fee legislation, adding that he still hopes the bill will be revived. "If you have greater technology you can communicate better."

MISSING FUNDING

But as finished budgets hit lawmakers’ desks on Monday, the $3.5 million the universities requested isn’t there. And the technology fee, which could charge students up to $300 a year and has failed to pass several years in a row, faced little chance, considering Crist’s firm stance against any tuition or fee hike.

State university system Chancellor Mark Rosenberg told Leavitt that even if universities have information about potential threats, they can’t always use it because of federal privacy laws.

"The left hand and the right hand are not working together," Rosenberg said during a meeting with state officials and Leavitt.

Crist said he wants time to study the issue of campus security. The Miami Herald reported Monday that dangerously mentally ill people could buy firearms in Florida through a similar loophole that allowed the Virginia Tech shooter to buy guns. Crist said the issue "sounds like something we should look at."

Last week, university presidents and police chiefs told a Senate committee that they struggle to retain campus police officers because they can’t pay competitive salaries. They reported they’ve been working to improve communication with students, with many universities collecting students’ cellphone numbers to send out text messages.

Miami Herald staff writer Mary Ellen Klas contributed to this report.

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Copyright (c) 2007, The Miami Herald

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