Violence Forum

The violence forum enough is enough is currently taking place here on the alumni green. This forum is taking place mostly due to the tragic death of Jared Barrows. An active sophomore here at Plymouth State University who lived in Langdon Woods. However, both the Student Administration as well as the Campus Administration has been under critical fire due to this most recent death here at Plymouth State. There is a group of students that are mostly present in Langdon Woods and friends of Jared Barrows who are trying to raise money for his tuition, medical and burial costs. This effort taken on by students is to help relieve his family of these fees during the family’s tragic time of loss. Hopefully, this forum will help address the issue of security on this campus as well as what will come of the fundraising efforts. Since the students that were organized were told they cannot fundraise on campus for such an event.

The campus does have a full emergency plan. It includes everything from bioterrorism, spills, floods, bomb threats, to lockdown methods. The university President Sara Jayne Steen pointed out a little known fact that we are the center of our region. If there is an epidemic that does occur people will be processed here at Plymouth State University in the Foley Gymnasium. To make our campus safer is looking into a text messaging system. This system does seem like a positive environment to access all students in a short period of time. However, the President did say that legally the University can’t require students to relinquish their cell phone numbers to the university. The President did ask for access to student’s cell phone numbers to cooperate so that we can effectively reach students.

President Steen said that she would rather have a student call 911 or campus police at extension 2330. She also asked for trust. Truly this is the Presidents first stride in asking for the students trust when the university will try to get in contact with students. A large number of faulty truly came out of their offices to listen to the Presidents Speech. Dr. Shirley, Dr. McCool, Mr. Chong, Mr. Barba, Ms. Tardiff, and Dr. Browne just to name a few. The current and past student body Presidents Trevor Chandler and Peter Laufenberg were also present at this form and ceremony.

However it is time for two questions to be answered.

1. Response time to dispatchers answering the campus police phones. The administration is meeting with the Campus Chief Of Police. The President said that she would bring up this question posed by the writer. As I was waiting to ask the President (Sara Jayne Steen) this question I saw a fellow classmate ask a similar question to the Chief of Campus Police. Last night during our class three to four students were scaling and climbing the walls of Memorial Hall. One classmate called Campus Police and got through and before the student could answer the student was put on hold. The student hung up and just wondered what our dispatch response time was. Another student called soon after and got through to an operator. When patched through he told the operator. However, during the entire class the class saw no response by Campus Police.

2. There is a way in which the students could try to organize a fundraiser for Jared Barrows. The Vice President Dick Hage said that the students should try to contact the development office. The President said that the Attorney Generals office established a fund to cover the family’s medical and burial cost. However, neither the President nor the Vice President said anything about coverage or voiding the tuition costs of Jared Barrows. Hopefully, the students that are trying to organize this fund will be successful so that the family does not have to suffer any further with the burden of his tuition bill.

This clearly illustrates how university politics have tackled the issues about violence. It is refreshing to see that our administrations are doing their best to make Plymouth State a much safer place for all that attends the university. This is a step in the right direction on the part of the President and her staff. As well as I think the trust that she is asking for is one that we should grant her. This is the one of the most effective ways to make Plymouth the town and the University safer for all who come onto our campus. This was a great forum and it exemplified politics on the University, Town, State and National levels.