Proactive security
PC, police take aim at school shooters
The recent tragedy at Umpqua Community College in Oregon has raised concerns nationwide about student and staff safety on school campuses.
Since 2013, there have been at least 142 school shootings in America — an average of nearly one a week, according to the Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, an independent, nonpartisan organization dedicated to understanding and reducing gun violence in America.
The uptick in violence has brought divisive debate among government policymakers on whether firearms should be allowed on school grounds.
Chris Harper-mercer had six guns with him when he entered a Umpqua campus building a week ago and began firing on students in a class he was taking. Of chief concern to gun control proponents was that Harper-mercer was within his legal right to carry the weapons on campus, according to Oregon’s laws.
Currently, California state law bans guns from school campuses with only a few exceptions. In order to carry a concealed weapon on school grounds, one must be a law enforcement officer — retired or active — or possess a concealed carry permit and have written permission to do so from the district board or president. A new bill, if signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, would make it illegal for even those with concealed carry permits to possess a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school or college campus.
Mo Montgomery, Porterville College’s Communications and Marketing Manager, said the changes from the new law would most likely have minimal impact locally.
“We abide by the California law of no weapons on campus in general,” she said. “And to my knowledge, no one has been given that [written permission] other than law enforcement.”
The college does have a Police Resource Officer, contracted through the Porterville Police Department (PPD), as a result of a security audit done by the school over the summer. The officer is part of the reserve force and was described by PPD Sgt. Rick Carrillo as a “decorated police officer with many years of service.”
Beyond that, PC has two additional security officers on campus at any given time with patrol vehicles.
PC President Dr. Rosa Carlson said the audit was a result of recent gun violence affecting the country.
“When you’re here [on campus] everyday, you start getting used to things,” she said. Thus, the college hired a private investigator to assess campus security.
“He walked around [campus] at random times,” Carlson said. “We never knew when he’d be on campus, day or night.”
After learning about certain vulnerabilities, PC officials wanted to beef up security and that resulted with the Resource Officer employed by PPD being added permanently. The college also has invested in improving its camera system and campus lighting, and has made sure that a working phone connected to the main office is in each classroom.
Montgomery said school officials also employed an emergency-alert system that notifies students via email, text, phone and social media and can be used for a variety of situations.
“You never know who, what, when, where or why,” Carlson said. “We are just trying to be proactive instead of reactive.”
In the Kern Community College District, of which PC is a part, the handbook for safety on campus devotes an entire page to how students should act if a shooting occurs.
Carrillo said PPD trains annually department- wide for how to react to an active shooter, primarily in schools. This past year, the department used Burton Middle School as their training ground for a mock-shooting exercise.
“We train for it,” Carrillo said. “We are prepared.”
Carlson said PC intends to offer self-defense classes for concerned students and staff.
“We want to encourage students to remain aware but to continue to attend classes,” Montgomery said.
At the same time, Montgomery advised students to “take threats via social media or other (mediums) seriously and to report them to officials.”
Carlson said her staff would continue efforts to stay proactive, and do everything within their power to keep students and instructors safe.
“Nothing can fully prepare a campus emotionally or even physically for this kind of situation,” Montgomery said. “But we have protocols in place.”