On April 20, 1999 when the news broke that there had been a violent shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, how did the pit of your stomach feel after those images of teenagers fleeing for their lives and so many dead kept coming across your television screen? Did it seem unbelievable that teenagers going to school that day later would be dead because some of their peers gunned them down?

How about less than two weeks ago on October 10 in Cleveland, Ohio, when a fourteen year old shot two students and teachers and then fatally shot himself. Fourteen?

Let’s not forget this year in April, when image after image came across our screens and reports on the radio of the horrific Virginia Tech campus shootings which left 33 dead.

A report compiled by the Department of Education regarding school safety states that from 1993-1997, the odds that a child in high school would be threatened or injured with a weapon in school were 7-8% or one in thirteen or fourteen.

It also reported that from the earliest identified school incident in 1974 to 2000, there have been 37 incidents of targeted school-based attacks by 41 individuals over a 25-year period.

What precautions are being instituted across schools and campuses to attempt to make our educational experience as safe as possible? And if an incident happens, how can students be informed quickly to decrease injuries and deaths?

On April 17 of this year after the Virginia Tech shootings, Missouri Governor Blunt appointed a task force to meet and examine the safety and security at Missouri’s higher educational institutions.

The task force compiled a three-page campus security survey they sent to colleges and universities in Missouri. The number of institutions that responded was 36.

Of those that responded, 92% identified emergency notification as the biggest issue they face. If something is "going down" across campus, how can we be informed so we don't step right into a situation?

Proposals under discussion include a system for mass messaging to cell phones, a teacher-initiatied paging system to contact students, intercom announcements, automatic locking of doors, and similar possibilities.

Guiding principles the task group used in choosing recommendations:

"1. While campuses are relatively safe, coordinated planning ensures preparation for all future crises.
"2. A one-size fits all approach will not work.
"3. There is no quick fix.
"4. Financial resources, while necessary, are limited.
"5. The entire campus and surrounding community has a role to play.
"6. Plans must balance security against function and privacy."

(To view the entire report, go to http://www.dps.mo.gov/CampusSafety/index.htm)

The ten key findings in the Federal Safe School Initiative study regarding previous school incidents are

• "Incidents of targeted violence at school rarely were sudden, impulsive acts.
  
• "Prior to most incidents, other people knew about the attacker’s idea and/or plan to attack.
  
• "Most attackers did not threaten their targets directly prior to advancing the attack.
  
• "There is no accurate or useful “profile” of students who engaged in targeted school violence.
  
• "Most attackers engaged in some behavior prior to the incident that caused others concern or indicated a need for help.
  
• "Most attackers had difficulty coping with significant losses or personal failures. Moreover, many considered or attempted suicide.
  
• "Many attackers felt bullied, persecuted or injured by others prior to the attack.
  
• "Most attackers had access to and had used weapons prior to the attack.
  
• "In many cases, other students were involved in some capacity.
  
• "Despite prompt law enforcement responses, most shooting incidents were stopped by means other than law enforcement
intervention."

In a news release on June 15, 2007, about students providing input to the governor’s campus security task force, Sean McClain, President of the UMKC student government, "warned the task force to bear in mind students’ freedoms and rights when making their recommendations."

While the proper balance between civil liberties and safety still needs to be found, Missouri students can rest a bit easier knowing that their safety is a priority in Missouri.

Copyright 2007 Metropolitan Community College