In light of the recent event that occurred on South Green, I've been thinking about the safety here at Ohio University. As I sit in my classes, it is very obvious to me that it would be extremely easy for anyone just to walk into a building and commit a violent act. I know that in the majority of the classes I have taken, the doors do not lock automatically when they are shut. To me, this is a serious and threatening problem.
I realize that most people would say that if someone were crazy or enraged enough to do something as serious as shoot innocent students and staff members, that person would have no problem breaking into a locked room. This is true, but in a situation like that, the one extra minute that the culprit is fumbling with the door could save many valuable lives. Installing automatic locks, increasing security and taking other precautions for the prevention of school violence is no doubt very expensive. But with the recent events that have been happening more and more frequently, people should not take the poor security measures at colleges across the nation lightly. I only hope that as the magnitude of these problems increase, so will the protection of the students and staff here at OU as well as other campuses nationwide. By using a small percentage of students' tuition and possibly a slice of the revenue brought in from parking tickets, I believe it would be well worth the money to improve our university's safety. I am willing to bet that almost every person paying tuition on this campus would not object to paying an extra 20 dollars or so to go toward saving his or her life.
Until these issues improve, I only hope that students and staff members of universities around the country are being cautious and aware of their surroundings.
Lacey Jewell is a sophomore organizational communications major.
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Letter to the Editor
