CLASS Task Force To Release Report Today
Oklahoma's Campus Life and Safety and Security (CLASS) Task Force next
week will present Gov. Brad Henry with the results of its seven-month
study on the state of campus security in Oklahoma. Among the
recommendations, released in draft form this week, are calls for
increased spending on security in post-secondary institutions and
greater collaboration between higher education, law enforcement, and
mental health professionals.
The CLASS Task Force was
established last April in Oklahoma in response to the shootings at
Virginia Tech to evaluate the status of safety and security on the
state's campuses and to make recommendations for improvements. The
15-member group is headed up by Glen D. Johnson, chancellor of the
Oklahoma State System of Higher Education (chairman), and Phil
Berkenbile, director of the Department of Career and Technology
Education (vice chairman). Other members include representatives from
higher education, public safety, and health services.
One of the
most significant recommendations to come from a draft report from the the task force, details of which were released last week, was a call
to increase spending on safety and security from the present level of
about $24.7 million to $40 million for public post-secondary
institutions (which include career technology centers). Other
recommendations included:
- The creation of threat-assessment task forces;
- Improvements in emergency notification systems;
- Emergency response training and drills for staff; and
- An increase in the number of mental health professionals working on campuses.
The
draft of the report did not include a recommendation for banning guns
on campuses in the state. However, it was reported this week that such
a recommendation might make its way into the final report. We'll provide further details when we receive the final report.
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