CAM PUS
keeping campus safe BY NICOLE GIMPL PHOTOS BY KATIE MALLES
I N A M AT T E R O F 120 M I N UTES, A G U NMAN E N DE D TH E LI V E S O F 3 2 P E O P LE , I N J U R E D 17 OT H E R S AN D CHANG E D TH E C O U N T RY F O R E V E R . The Virginia Tech shooting in 2007 and others like it have struck fear into the hearts of parents of college-aged adults and the young adults themselves. According to a study by Everytown, a gun safety support fund, there were 76 shootings on a college or university campus between 2013 and 2015. In early October 2015, at Northern Arizona University, 20-year-old Colin Brough was shot on campus, supposedly by shooting suspect, 19-year-old Steven Jones. Flagstaff is known as a college town, 24
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with one-fifth of the population made up of students. The college campus is central to its sense of community, so the shooting shook most everyone. “People were pretty shaken up for a while after,” says NAU visual communications sophomore Lindsey Ibarra. “Especially the Greek Life community. All the sororities and fraternities banded together to support each other because the victims were in one of the fraternities on campus. Things changed around campus, too, like extra security at campus events, which made me feel safer but also reminded me what had happened and that freaked me out." Since then, improving security on campuses has become an increasingly important issue in communities across the U.S. — including the communities surrounding Arizona State University. “The ASU Police Department has increased officer and police aide positions
over the past two years,” says John Thompson, ASU Police Department Commander. “We continue to monitor and work with university officials regarding hiring needs.” In the 21st Century, students worry about more than isolated physical threats. In 2015, less than a month after the shooting at NAU, ASU was the target of an internet threat, which officials found to be unsubstantiated. One of the issues facing on-campus security professionals are the multiple entry points to each building on campus. Because these buildings are integral parts of the communities they are in, such asthe University Center at the Downtown Phoenix Campus or Memorial Union in Tempe, it would be difficult to limit entry points and keep the level of community engagement these buildings offer. Community health major Sofia Carreon says she doesn’t feel safe at the Downtown Campus because of the transients that walk through due to the openness of the buildings. “I don’t feel safe on campus,” says Carreon. “I’m in Tempe and Downtown, and in Tempe, you have more of the fraternity and sorority area. I know people do target the sorority area, and I know that area is kind of sketchy. The ASU Police Department sees the problems, too. Despite the feeling an officer gets from a person, they are unable to do anything unless they pose an imminent threat to students and faculty on campus. “We cannot discriminate against people based on how they look, dress or appear,” Thompson says. “A person’s behavior is what draws our attention to them and dictates the appropriate steps to take; ask to leave or arrest.” Walking around any college campus, students can experience moments of paranoia. Some campus buildings have police aides at the front desks while others have