Several University of Oklahoma students are concerned for their safety in Norman and on campus in light of recent tragic events in other college towns such as the 2023 Michigan State University shooting and the 2022 Idaho murders.
On Feb. 13, a mass shooting occurred on the Michigan State University campus, resulting in three deaths and five injuries, and on Nov. 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were murdered in an off-campus residence. These events are only two of many that have occurred on and around college campuses over the years, and they have made some OU students worried.
Jack Paylor, management information systems sophomore, said that one of his main concerns is the OU Police Department’s lack of up-to-date training. Staffing shortages have greatly affected the department recently. OUPD Sergeant Shane Roddy told CBS that he had not trained in an active shooter drill in years, and that the department is in desperate need of funding and staff.
Pre-nursing sophomore Angelica Carrillo said she is worried about the timeliness of the police department in case of a tragic event.
“As for shootings and whatnot, we do have a lot of security, but I wouldn’t say that they’re the best,” Carrillo said. “It would take them a second to get there.”
Paylor said he is concerned about the number of medical devices on campus, specifically automated external defibrillators, and their level of accessibility. AEDs are used to help restore the heart’s rhythm for those experiencing sudden cardiac arrest.
“I’ve noticed around campus, there’s really not a lot of AEDs and stuff like that put in public buildings,” Paylor said. I know at the bottom of each dorm, or at least in the towers, they have them but they’re actually locked inside the RA's offices. So, if something were to happen at 2 or 3 a.m., they’re not gonna be downstairs in their office, so you’d kind of be screwed.”
When asked how many AEDs were on campus, where they are located, and if they are easily accessible, Amy Buchanan, director of marketing and communications of OU Campus Operations, provided this statement in an email to OU Daily.
“OU Campus Safety approves automated external defibrillator (AED) purchases for campus and currently has a database totaling 140 devices,” Buchanan wrote. “Campus Safety also retains the make, model, serial number and location of each AED, along with a list of site coordinators who are responsible for maintaining the device. AEDs are designed to treat people experiencing sudden cardiac arrest with an electric shock. Some site coordinators may choose to have secured access to these portable devices. AEDs assigned to OU Housing can be found in secured areas and spaces that can be accessed by students. If an AED is under controlled access, a plan that is in alignment with that area is set up to allow access by authorized people. AED training and knowledge of CPR is recommended to use the device.”
Paylor believes the university should also invest in bleeding control bags, which are medical bags containing materials such as gauze, compression bandages, and C-A-T tourniquets. Paylor said that these would be a tremendous help in an unfortunate event such as a mass shooting.
“When it comes to shootings, most of the time the reason you’re gonna die before you get to the hospital is from bleeding out,” Paylor said. “So having those can potentially save someone’s life if something like that were to happen.”
Carrillo also expressed concerns about not being prepared with supplies for potential horrific events such as a shooting, and said that fundraisers may be a way to obtain such medical supplies, if necessary.
“The MSU shootings, that happened just recently, and it could happen to OU,” Carrillo said. “It could happen to any university. So I feel like we as a community need to help each other out, and if we need to make fundraisers or something to help with these types of supplies, I think we’d all be willing to do that.”
Carrillo and Paylor both expressed concerns for apartment safety as well. Paylor said that his apartment complex, Millennium Apartments, lacks camera security, secure gates, and has fallen victim to several car break-ins.
“When it comes to cameras, we really don’t have much that cover each and every angle,” Paylor said. “Within a month here we had at least 12 car break-ins. I wake up every other day and someone says, ‘oh someone broke into my car,’ I’d see that on the GroupMe.”
Paylor said that he believes the location of Millennium is partly to blame. Being located on a high traffic road, he believes it makes the complex more of a target.
“I live on a major road right now, I’m on Classen and Lindsey,” Paylor said. “So it’s very attractive for thieves because they have their getaway car sitting at the front, and they can just peel off on Lindsey.”
When OU Daily reached out to Millennium Apartments for comment on the amount of security cameras, function of the entry gate, car break-ins, and overall safety measures they had not provided a response as of May 2.
Carrillo said that her old apartment complex, Alight Norman, was subject to many car break-ins, and that she feels the complex does not have adequate security. She said that all complexes should focus more on security, and less on boasting about their amenities.
“They (apartment complexes) prioritize more of their status and their ratings and things like that, rather than the people that actually live there,” Carrillo said. Safety wise, especially near campus, I definitely think there should be a lot more protective services, like an on-call person overnight, or someone who’s just there patrolling because I mean, even that helps a lot.”
When asked about security cameras, car break-ins, and security measures, Allana Winn, customer and sales experience manager of Alight Norman, provided this statement in an email to the Daily.
“For safety reasons we do not publish all security measures, but we can share that the safety and security of our residents are always our top priorities,” Winn wrote. “We have an on-site courtesy officer who is a Cleveland County Sheriff Supervisor and security cameras in some locations. Our management staff are also available 24/7 for emergencies. All applicants to live with us are subject to criminal background checks, and we prohibit any criminal or dangerous activity and take prompt action to remove anyone who poses a threat to the security of our residents. Around the time of move-in last Fall, we are aware of a small number of vehicles were accessed that were left unlocked, but we have not received reports of any recent break-ins in the community.”
Paylor also said that complexes need to focus more on having good security, and less on promoting amenities.
“What apartments need to start doing is, instead of marketing all their nice amenities, they need to put more investments into security and advertise security,” Paylor said. “A lot of the time, if someone’s looking at places to rob, they’re probably not gonna pick on a random house around here. … They’re gonna go after student areas because they know students are more likely to be more vulnerable when it comes to self defense.”
OUPD Lieutenant Chase Brooks said in an email to the Daily that college towns are at such a high risk for crime, especially burglary, for many reasons, and that some people may not be as equipped to deal with this new kind of environment.
“College towns may see increased criminal activity for a number of reasons, some of which include higher population density, a higher concentration of unattended vehicles and a population of people who may not be used to having to regularly secure their homes and belongings,” Brooks wrote in an email to the Daily.
Carrillo said that as a woman living in a college town like Norman, she makes sure to be hyper aware of her surroundings. She said that she used to not pay enough attention, but now is always checking around her, locking doors immediately, and constantly in a state of alertness due to these concerns for safety.
“My mom has always engraved in my head, ‘Always look where you’re going,” Carrillo said. “But to me I was always just like, ‘Oh my mom’s being paranoid, oh I’ll be fine.’ But then there’s another girl who thought the same thing and then she ended up getting kidnapped, she ended up getting raped.”
Brooks stated that OUPD is available 24/7. Students are encouraged to report any activity that makes them feel unsafe.
“OUPD is active 24/7, every day of the year, and officers regularly conduct proactive patrols of campus,” Brooks stated. “OUPD always encourages anyone who observes suspicious or potentially dangerous behavior to report it by calling (405) 325-1717 or 911 for emergencies.”
One way the university aims to promote student safety is with SafeRide, a company that allows students to call a designated number or use an app to receive a ride on the weekends from anywhere in the Norman city limits for free.
Kennedy Corbin, aviation and entrepreneurship sophomore, said that her friends have immense trouble with trying to use SafeRide, whether that’s due to long wait times, or drivers whom they are not comfortable with.
“I’ve heard when people are able to get it to work, it can take up to two hours so it’ll be ineffective at that point,” Corbin said. “When people have been able to use it, I’ve heard them complain about how the drivers are kind of sketchy. I know OU uses an outside source, it’s not staff and students on campus.”
Hannah Farahmand, finance senior, has used SafeRide many times, and said her main issue is the long wait times. She also said that drivers are not always the friendliest.
“My biggest thing about SafeRide is that it takes so long,” Farahmand said. “If I order a ride, I should expect it in two hours to get here. As far as the drivers, sometimes they're not in a good mood and sometimes they don't let one extra person in, even if it fits.”
Corbin said that there should be a better system to check the credentials of SafeRide drivers.
“I think maybe going through SafeRide and just having a way to validate that the people who are working and offering those rides, that they are legit and they’re safe people,” Corbin said. “It’s just really sketchy and not feeling safe, especially since a lot of people using it are usually coming from the bars and parties and are wasted, so they’re not in a good mindset."
Farahmand said that she loves the idea of SafeRide, but would like to see its problems resolved.
“I love the idea of SafeRide, I think it was my favorite thing when I was learning about OU, because drunk driving is such a problem and I love the idea of getting people rides for free,” Farahmand said. “I feel like the main way for it to get better is if they paid more or if they had their own drivers, if they just got more of them or more cars. I think it's just a lack of what they have.”
When asked if SafeRide plays a significant role in the safety of OU students, George Ahmadi, director of student government and organization services, provided this statement in an email to the OU Daily.
“SafeRide was implemented in 2003 as part of the Student Alcohol Policy,” Ahmadi wrote. “Its mission is to provide on-demand, safe, free and confidential rides for OU students within the Norman city limits. Since July 1, 2022, SafeRide provided 2394 rides to 5234 passengers. It plays an integral role in the resources that students have when it comes to safety at OU. In addition, I have sat in presentations with OUPD where the program has been touted as essential to keeping students from drinking and driving.”
Ahmadi also confirmed that SafeRide does use an outside source to provide its drivers in another statement via email, and wrote that they have to go through background checks.
“SafeRide has a contract with Airport Express and they provide the fleet and drivers for the SafeRide service,” Ahmadi wrote. “Airport Express is contractually obligated to make sure that their drivers have passed background and safety checks before they transport our students.”
Corbin, who lives on Greek Row, also said that there has been grave concern for stalking reports outside the sorority houses. It has even caused many members to move out, or constantly stay over at other people’s places.
“There have been lots of stalking reports,” Corbin said. “I know that our sorority, I think for the past few weeks, we’ve been getting texts like ‘Hey girls, make sure to stay in the house, we’re going under lockdown.’”
Corbin said that OU should be doing more to notify students of such stalking reports or other crimes. She said that OU could create another mass emergency text notification system for smaller crimes or alerts, similar to the notification system they have now for motor theft or serious crimes.
“OU has the overall text thread for everybody on campus and I know they really try to reserve that for really serious events, for example all the motor theft, and when there was that shooting on Lindsey last year,” Corbin said. “I do think that maybe they could incorporate a separate thread individualized to address all these different threats that happen.”
Carrillo said that other students need to know that bad things don’t just happen in the media, they can happen to anyone. It’s important for people to be aware, and for actions to be taken to ensure our safety.
“It’s that same mentality that we all have that we think, ‘Oh it won’t happen to me, it happens in the movies,’ but it definitely happens in real life,” Carrillo said. “There are some times where I still kind of am in my own little world, like I don’t really care to acknowledge the bad because it just scares me you know, but I feel like we need to have that realization like, ‘Hey, this can happen,’ and do something about it.”
OU and the city of Norman do provide a multitude of resources to reach out to if you are in need. Reach OUPD by calling (405) 325-2864, SafeWALK by (405) 325-9255, SafeRide by (405) 325-7433, OU Advocates by (405) 615-0013, Goddard Health Center by (405) 325-4611, Norman Rape Crisis Center by (405) 701-5660, Domestic Violence Crisis Line and Shelter by (405) 701-5540, and HELPLINE by (405) 364-3800.
This story was edited by Silas Bales and Emma Blakley. Mary Ann Livingood and Nikkie Aisha copy edited this story.
