Disclaimer: This article discusses the mental health effects of gun violence and mentions mass shootings. This article does not mean to generalize the opinions of the CU student body and respects the opinions of every student.
Dear University of Colorado Boulder,
Your students come from a generation that grew up with gun violence as a core part of our childhood. We were the same age as the victims when the Sandy Hook shooting happened, and had to grow up without them. We were teens during the Parkland shooting, and we had to graduate without them. Just when we thought we had escaped the horrors of gun violence, the Michigan State shooting proved college students are not safe from mass shootings.
When we were learning algebra, we were also learning how to cover our heads and hide against the sides of our classrooms in the dark. We are no strangers to gun violence. So, as people who have grown up with generational trauma, every instance of gun violence can act as a serious trigger. We had three campus-wide alerts in one week. The first one was a shooting at the Millenium Hotel, only half a mile away from campus. “As there were unknown events going on, you only sent out a “Shelter in place” warning. Professors didn’t cancel class, and thousands of students continued to walk around campus.”
In a survey that I sent out to students on their thoughts about the crime in Boulder, 88 students responded. 56% of them said that they still had to attend class during the shelter-in-place, and 32.1% of them skipped class because they feared for their safety. The second alert was for a threat to Boulder High School, which is only half a mile away from campus. While Boulder High School was locked down, we were told to “Shelter in Place” yet again with no changes to campus activities. Just when we thought the chaos of the week was all over, as we were studying or getting ready for bed, we got another CU Alert, telling us that there was yet another shooting near campus. Was the suspect caught? No. Was he on the loose near University housing and campus? Yes. It is not normal to have three gun-related alerts near a university campus. So why are you treating it like it’s not a big deal?
Now, we know the University is not in charge or can fix gun violence in the city of Boulder. We know that even the police can’t prevent gun violence. But here is what you can do as a university to support over the 30,000 students you have. First of all, why are students allowed to conceal carry on campus? I know you have to in order to comply with Colorado law but why don’t students know that their fellow classmates can be carrying a gun and why haven’t you initiated a conversation about it? If you can’t change your laws or influence a change in the city of Boulder, then the least you can do is support your students. In the survey, 62.5% of students said they don’t believe that the university cares about their mental health. Since the shootings, no one from the Board of Regents or the Chancellor has addressed how emotionally distressing these crimes can be to students. 62.5% of the students said they were affected by the crimes or knew someone who was affected.
You haven’t offered crisis services. You also continue to hold classes when students don’t feel safe coming to class or offer grace to students who feel unsafe due to the frequency of crimes. One student in the survey said “I would like for the campus to acknowledge the mental health impacts of the safety alerts and be willing to close campus if something is occurring so close to campus. I would also like for them to allow for excused absences if students do not feel comfortable coming to campus.” You could also hold press conferences with the police department or with the Chancellor, where the students could attend and ask questions about the crimes that have taken place in our community. We know that as a university, you can’t stop crime near campus. But you can change how you respond to these crimes, how you keep your students safe, and how you care for the students who put their trust and safety in your hands.
Do better.
Sincerely,
Concerned students.
More student opinions expressed in the survey:
“Cancel class if there’s a shelter-in-place order around classes. How can I legitimately be expected to go to class if the police department tells me to shelter in place?”
“I would like to see a picture attached to the alert messages with a small map of the area affected so I can better understand where the shelter is taking place, instead of me trying to hunt it down on Google Maps.”
“I would like to know what happens after an alert that the event is over. Are people hurt? Did they catch the person? I also think that attendance should not be counted on campus when an alert ordering a shelter in place is sent out, because students’ grades are affected and it doesn’t feel like CU values our safety over our attendance.”
“The chancellor and board of regents have no understanding of how gun violence affects us. We have been taught since elementary school how to prepare for an active shooter. They have not. They have only been exposed to this type of violence after Columbine up until now. They need to listen to what students are saying during these times and take it seriously.”
“Listen to the students.”
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Article Update 3/9/2023: After fact checking and working with the University, we have updated this article to best reflect the facts at the time. We have removed and changed small parts of the article to bring you the most accurate information possible.