The Online Reflector

By Caitlin Mannan | Staff Writer

Feb. 14 marked the one-year anniversary of the Northern Illinois University shooting that cost the lives of six NIU students and injured 18 others. Universities and colleges across the nation have experienced similar tragedies, and now the University of Indianapolis is taking a multi-faceted approach to prevent a similar situation.

The Emergency Planning Committee is the president-appointed university group charged with researching and presenting a plan of action for emergency situations that could occur on or near campus.

Mick Reddick, chief of police, said the committee is currently working on plans to enhance campus security. The committee is composed of several individuals from different departments within the campus community.

“We’ve been drafting a preliminary report that we’ll present to the president,” Tom Christenberry, chair of the committee said. “We hope to have that finished up within the next two to four weeks so that we can give it to Beverley Pitts and say, ‘Here are recommendations that we think should be considered.’ Of course, any decisions that pertain to that would be up to the president and the cabinet, and ultimately the board of trustees.”

Kory Vitangeli, dean of students, said she knows that the university’s financial situation will be a determining factor in deciding what is purchased to increase campus security.

“We actually went through all of the last academic year reviewing bids for security cameras and door access from different companies, so we have all the information . . . now it’s just a matter of the university figuring out where fiscally they’re able to afford. Certainly it [security] is a priority for the university,” Vitangeli said.

Surveillance cameras, electronic card access at building doors, chemical spills and pandemics are all issues, among many more, that the committee considered as part of a broad-based approach to updating the university’s pre-existing, but outdated, Emergency Management Plan.

The Emergency Planning Committee also is working on fine-tuning a campus violence program that was presented to Residence Directors and Residence Assistants earlier this year. Details are still forthcoming, but when completed, the program will be presented to students, staff and faculty.

“Make sure that when you see that [the program] is coming up, don’t say, ‘Oh, well, I’ll catch it later,’ or something like that. Actually come and see it, because it’s very empowering,” Reddick said.

Reddick is working with the Emergency Planning Committee to develop and present the campus-wide program.

Reddick, Christenberry and Vitangeli also expressed the need for faculty, staff and students to register for Watchdog, the campus emergency notification system.

“Traditionally, across the country, most mass notification systems are voluntary and, as such, it’s very seldom that you get a 50 percent participation rate,” Christenberry said.

“I know when we first started here, we didn’t have 50 percent, which means there are a lot of students, faculty and staff out there who won’t get the notification.”

Vitangeli voiced the same concern.

“We may be a little bit fearful in terms of something major happening and only half of our population being notified,” she said.

Christenberry listed three key pieces of information that students need to consider to increase their own safety.

“We are all responsible, to a certain degree, for our own personal safety. Secondly, respond and react to the university police department. Thirdly, sign up for Watchdog,” Christenberry said. “I know it’s not mandatory, but it probably ought to be and everybody needs to sign up for this thing. Campus safety is the responsibility of everybody and it’s an ongoing thing.”