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March 14, 2008 07:24 pm
No guns, say O-State students and teachers
“When you consider: the number of people on campus, that many of these people are young and emotional, and that there is a concomitant alcohol problem that we are trying to correct, there is no question that all-in-all the more guns you allow on campus, the more incidents you will have."
By Sean Hubbard
CNHI News Service
STILLWATER, Okla. — Is it a good idea for more than 20,000 Oklahoma State University students to be able to carry a pistol with them to class while OSU employees cannot?
That question was recently answered by the OSU Faculty Council, as it passed a resolution opposing Oklahoma House Bill 2513, a measure to allow guns on college campuses across the state.
“The faculty believe that putting firearms in the hands of individuals without the proper training in emergency situations of the type to likely occur on a university campus and in a crowded classroom will increase the violent incidents and their associated casualties,” said Dr. Bob Miller, Faculty Council chairman. “The OSU Police Department does an excellent job of safeguarding the university, and the university administration and regents, as well as the state Regents for Higher Education, have and continue to revise an excellent plan to protect the university community.”
The plan, Campus Life Safety and Security, addresses five major areas: Laws and policies; counseling; response; notification; and funding. C.L.A.S.S. was created by executive order of Gov. Brad Henry in April.
“The purpose of the task force is to review and evaluate current safety and security plans and student counseling services already in place for higher education and career technology institutions and to make recommendations for any needed changes,” according to the State Regents for Higher Education Web site, www.okhighered.org/class.
While HB 2513 may be designed to further protect people, OSU faculty and students disagree. Students have started a group on Facebook.com in opposition to the bill, and have collaborated with the faculty on the major points of disagreement.
“When you consider: the number of people on campus, that many of these people are young and emotional, and that there is a concomitant alcohol problem that we are trying to correct, there is no question that all-in-all the more guns you allow on campus, the more incidents you will have,” Miller said. “We feel that injecting the added possibility of violence, whether intentional or not, that HB 2513 would create would impinge on the atmosphere of learning that it is the university’s responsibility to provide for its students, professors and staff alike.”
The Student Body Organization and the OSU Faculty Council have agreed on the following points:
• Police officers will be unable to distinguish the armed “bad” guys from the armed “good” guys.
• A student’s good intentioned attempt to protect others very likely could do more harm than good.
• Allowing students, but not faculty, to have guns will drive many faculty members to leave OSU because of safety concerns.
• Campus safety can better be ensured by implementing the recommendations of the C.L.A.S.S. Task Force.
Sean Hubbard writes for Stillwater (Okla.) NewsPress.
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