Soapbox
Augustana not invulnerable to possible school shooting

By Nathan Elg

Mirror Staff Writer
February 29, 2008

I am listening intently to my English professor illustrate the power of alliteration in the work of the great storyteller Annie Dillard. I lean forward, engaged.

Learning is living.

The Humanities classroom door then swings open. A fellow college student steps in, blazoned in black, and unleashes a machine of bullets into the classroom.

I plunge under my desk. Chairs are moving, students are crawling, bullets are screaming. And then one final blast of a bullet.

A frightening fame.

American college campuses are several incidents too late at preventing such incidents from happening because no one knows exactly how to prevent them, including Augustana.

“If someone tells you there’s a way to prevent situations like Virginia Tech or Northern Illinois University from happening, they’re lying,” Campus Safety director Rick Tupper said. “The thing we can be sure of is minimizing the time for a potential shooter by speeding up the response time.”

Augustana restricts weapons on campus and solely relies on the Sioux Falls Police Department (SFPD) to stop a shooting incident if one were to occur at Augustana. Tupper said it takes three to five minutes for SFPD to arrive on campus.

Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University have licensed police officers on their campus. 

Some Augustana students disagree with Tupper and believe that allowing law-abiding citizens to carry concealed weapons on college campuses would deter incidents like Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University from happening.

“It’s a scary world we live in,” sophomore nursing major Matt Eitelgeorge said. “And knowing that I can defend myself and potentially others from a situation that could happen, God forbid one ever does happen at Augustana, brings me a sense of safety and satisfaction.”

This is not a small minority mindset. Thirteen states, including South Dakota, have recently considered bills that would allow concealed weapons on their college campuses.

South Dakota’s bill, HB 1261, would allow stored firearms and the concealed carrying of firearms on its college campuses. Last month the bill passed 63-3 in the House along with Gov. Mike Rounds’ support for the bill, but then failed to pass the Senate State Affairs Committee earlier this month. The bill had enough support to move it from the subcommittee to the Senate floor, called a “smoke-out,” but failed by four votes to move to a full Senate debate.   

Opponents of any bill allowing guns on campus, including most of Augustana’s employees, believe guns on campus would create gun violence, especially with the prevalence of stress and alcohol at college. Opponents also believe permitting firearms on campus would create a fire-zone if a shooting were to occur.

Tupper sees even more     troubling circumstances with guns on Augustana’s campus.

“If police officers came to a shooting situation, if one happened, and this law was in place, they’re not going to know who the bad guy or good guy is,” Tupper said. “I would also be concerned about proficiency and training of those with guns, because I don’t think everyone should be able to carry a gun.”

South Dakota residents are more likely than residents of any other state to have a permit to carry a concealed gun. Augustana students could obtain a four-year concealed weapons permit at the sheriff’s office in exchange for a $10 bill. No training or proficiency required.

The only restriction is for individuals who have committed a felony or are mentally incompetent, habitually intoxicated or drugged or historically violent. The new Ole the Viking, with his violent look and drawn sword, would be one of the few at Augustana to be denied a concealed weapons permit.

But Ole is already allowed to carry his weapon on campus. Ole can help us win games, and he can help propel our unrivaled dominance into the South Dakota community. But he won’t be saving the violent day that every college student in America fears, a fear we can only master at responding to, but not assuredly prevent.