In the Wake of Parkland Florida School Shooting Prompts University to Assure Adelphi Tells Students About Campus Safety Applicants Protests
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The Delphian March 5, 2018 The Voice of the Students Volume 73, Issue 8 In the Wake of Parkland Florida School Shooting Prompts University to Assure Adelphi Tells Students About Campus Safety Applicants Protests BY GABRIELLE DEONATH Won’t Impact Over the past two weeks, the Admission safety of students in U.S. schools at all levels of education has been renewed as BY DELPHIAN STAFF a hot-button issue. These discussions are the result of the tragic shooting at Marjory In a show of support for the grow- Stoneman Douglas High School in Park- ing student advocacy in the aftermath of land, Fla., on February 14, when 17 people the February 14 shooting in Parkland, Fla., – 14 students and three faculty members – nearly 100 colleges and universities na- were murdered and many others were left tionwide—including Adelphi—are making injured. sure high school seniors know that their Many citizens are calling for participation in peaceful protests to call stricter gun control laws and mental health for school safety and gun control will not background checks for licensed gun hold- negatively impact their chances of getting ers to prevent incidents like this from hap- into college. pening again, while those on the other side Because the Common Applica- of the national debate have said that insti- tion for college admission asks students if Shooting survivors mourn the loss of teachers and fellow classmates. Image from AP tuting these regulations will not solve the they have been disciplined at school, and problem, though no alternative has been many colleges specify in their acceptance knows something troubling, please reach come to us and report incidents, and this proposed. The push for change to be made letters that any offer could be rescinded if out to Public Safety.” team will take a look at it.” through government legislation is driven the student is suspended or behaves inap- The team is made up of 18 staff by students around the country who wish propriately, parents and students alike are A Pro-Active Approach members from different departments and to feel safer in their schools, including sev- worried that should a student be suspended Two days following the attack, offices within the university who meet ev- eral survivors of the recent shooting. or given detention if they participate in up- Adelphi’s executive director of Pub- ery two weeks to evaluate reported safety Adelphi’s administration and De- coming protests, their college acceptance lic Safety and Transportation, Robert F. concerns and incidents. partment of Public Safety and Transporta- would be affected. Hughes, sent a campus-wide email remind- “The purpose is that we assess tion are joining the national conversation ing the community of the safety procedures any possible indication that there is a threat with a very localized focus: the safety of in place if a high-risk event were to occur. from anybody that we hear of,” Robert students and faculty on campus. “The tragic shootings in Florida Hughes said in an interview. “Not only Adelphi University President have made a deep impact on our commu- that, but it’s a wellness committee too. Christine M. Riordan said, “On a personal nity,” he wrote. “Those of us who work Let’s say we have students who are at risk. note, I understand the real concerns—both in Public Safety agree it is a good time to If someone has a history of doing attempt- as the president of Adelphi responsible for make sure we all know what to do in case ed suicides, we also evaluate that.” thousands of lives on our campuses, but of an act of violence on campus.” If it is decided by the group that also as someone with children and loved He included the number of the further action should be taken, a counselor ones on other school campuses where I Public Safety office, also found on the back will usually meet with the individual in cannot personally safeguard them. The is- of IDs issued by the university, and urged question and will then make recommenda- sue is on the top of my mind constantly. every university member to call if they be- tions to the threat assessment team based The highest priority for me and our execu- come aware of dangers to an individual’s on the information they have gathered. tive leadership is for all our students to feel self or others or in any situation that causes safe and welcome here.” fear and severe anxiety. Accommodating Students President Riordan said that Adel- He also cited an additional mea- One of the ongoing missions of phi is ranked very highly in the area of sure taken by the university as part of a the department of Public Safety is to mak- safety—in the top 5 percent in campus federal mandate after the Virginia Tech ing reporting incidents as convenient and safety in New York—and that the univer- Adelphi is among those schools shooting in 2007: the establishment of a easy for people as possible. Both Pub- sity is dedicated to keeping it that way. seeking to reassure students who are orga- threat assessment team. lic Safety administrators agreed that they “We practice our responses to nizing or participating in peaceful protests “It came out after the [Virginia try to accommodate students’ preferenc- emergencies. Our Department of Public this month. University president Christine Tech shooting] that a lot of people knew es, coming to them if necessary. Robert Safety is trained and prepared. Our lo- M. Riordan said, “It becomes clearer with a lot of different things about this guy and Hughes recalled a recent instance in which cal first responders are in contact with us every shooting that we must change the the signals and symptoms and signs that a student requested Public Safety staff to regularly,” she said. “Our policy regarding course of this ongoing issue. I am proud of he showed, but everyone kind of kept it to meet her at her car in order to discuss an weapons on campus is strict. Section 10 the students of Marjory Stoneman Doug- themselves,” said Raymond Hughes, Pub- incident that caused her concern, and they of the Student Code of Conduct prohibits las High School for turning their anger and lic Safety’s assistant director of operations. complied. use, storage or possession of any gun, even grief toward demanding change to protect “Nobody knew where to report it to or Adelphi Public Safety officers all if the person has a license. That means no students from gun violence. We should how to report it…That’s why we sent [the have either prior law enforcement or ca- guns, anywhere on campus. We enforce email] out, so people know that they can this around the clock, but if a student (Continued on page 3) (Continued on page 3) 2 • March 5, 2018 NEWS The Delphian A Word from the Editor Hello, again. Since the last time we met, I was asked to be one of the judges for the Quill Awards, which are for Adelphi’s annual high school journalism competi- tion and a part of Press Day, which took place here on February 28. As I went through the submissions, I was struck by some outstanding submissions by high schoolers Editor-in-Chief Volume 73 around Long Island. It was clear that some of these students had teachers who had taken Gabrielle Deonath Issue 8 the time to teach them journalism and AP style basics and the essential parts of compos- ing a well-structured and well-written story. With the guidance of adults, they were able News Editor Earle Hall Media Center to refine their skills and compose work that exceeded expectations. Matthew Schroh One South Avenue In the last few weeks, there has been another group of high school students Garden City, NY 11530 who have established a loud voice for themselves in our nation. Unfortunately, their Editorials Editor voices have been given a platform because of a tragedy that struck them in the one Victoria Grinthal HOW TO REACH US place that they thought they could feel safe: Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Main Office: 516-877-6935 in Parkland, Fla. They have attempted to create change by challenging National Rifle Features & Entertainment Editor E-mail: [email protected] Association representatives, government officials who are against stricter gun laws and Danielle McDougall even President Donald Trump. Students around the country are organizing school walk- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR outs and a march on Washington, DC. Sports Editor Letters to the editor must be less than The most shocking revelation to come out of this story is how many times Nicoletta Cuccio 400 words and include the author’s adults have failed these children, from government officials to the armed officers that name, as well as affiliation to the waited to enter the building where the shooter claimed the lives of 14 students and Production Artists college. Letters may be edited for the three teachers. Almost 20 years since the Columbine High School shooting and over Valerie Buonaiuto purposes of space and clarity. five years since 20 elementary school children were shot dead at Sandy Hook Elemen- Valentina Garcia Letters should be sent to tary School, there has been little done by the U.S. government to protect the safety of Lauren Tew [email protected] students at all levels in the education system. Now these high schoolers who vow to be the last school shooting in the country are looking for every opportunity to push Staff Writers ORIGINAL ART the influential adults in our country to make a difference, to create positive impact in Olivia Franks Original drawings, photographs, our country.