TECHNICIAN
monday august
30 2010
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Campus Police prepares for emergencies Wolf Alerts are one way the University communicates with students and faculty on campus. Pranay Deshpande Correspondent
Christian Olson, a graduate student in business administration and ex-Marine, thinks about campus safety differently. According to Olson, the only practical way to prevent a Virginia Tech-like situation is by operating similar to a prison. Olson said the avoiding a shooter-situation would require installing body scanners and enforcing strict campus rules. According to Olson, the only practical way to prevent another university massacre would be to offer courses in human psychology geared toward identifying suspicious characters. Captain Jon Barnwell of Campus Police said campus units are well-prepared to tackle any emergency situation on campus. According to Barnwell, preparation for Campus Police includes regular training for various situations, evaluating the effectiveness of a disaster recovery process and if the need arises, changing it to make it more responsive. Barnwell said the University relies on Wolf Alerts, which include mass text messaging, email broadcasting and home page messaging. Barnwell also said Campus Police could use television sets throughout campus to display emergency messages. According to Barnwell, use of technology has certainly reduced the challenges when it comes to mass communication. Barnwell said he feels that this connectivity has exposed people to the danger of sharing too much information, which may create unpleasant situations in future.
AMANDA KARST/TECHNICIAN ARCHIVE PHOTO
As one of the final steps in handling a reported car bomb and restoring safety, a suspicious vehicle in the Carter-Finley Lot was blown up June 24, 2009.
Barnwell said waiting for tactical units are not necessary at the University, because of increased training effectiveness. “Today the Campus Police is capable of neutralizing such a threat on their own,” Barnwell said. “There is no need of waiting for a tactical unit as was the case previously.” Barnwell also said the right kind of training has made emergency services capable of handling most campus situations effectively.
Barnwell said Campus Police and other emergency services are trying to promote emergency awareness at every possible event. “People need to be aware of their surroundings and report anything that is suspicious to the police. Sharing the responsibility is absolutely essential while working together on critical issues,” Barnwell said. Several students on campus said they were unaware of the emergency options available, but
Case Dining Hall closed to Tucker, Owen residents
feel safe on campus. Saurabh Ray, a graduate student in mechanical engineering, said he was aware of the emergency services, but was unable to identify the ways to reach these emergency services. Patrick McCachren, a graduate student in crop science, said he was aware of campus police and the blue emergency lights on campus.
Centennial Campus Challenge begins Sunday
Residents of Tucker and Owen Halls are now being directed to Fountain Dining Hall for meals.
The third-annual Centennial Campus Challenge will be held on the field next to the BTEC building.
Joanna E. Banegas
Chelsey Francis
Senior Staff Writer
Deputy News Editor
Tucker and Owen Hall residents are now excluded from eating at Case Dining Hall, except for some students from Tucker and Owen who were allowed prior to the change. According to Jennifer Gilmore, University Dining communication and marketing manager, students living in Avent Ferry, Wood, Carroll, Bowen, Metcalf, Turlington, and Alexander Halls, using a University Dining meal plan, have the option to eat at Case Dining Hall for breakfast, brunch and JONATHAN STEPHENS/TECHNICIAN ARCHIVE PHOTO lunch. Jordan Bunce, a sophomore in business management, and Laura Gilmore said Case Dining Hall is Whitehead, a sophomore in animal science, enjoy Fountain Dining Hall’s All open for all meals to all athletic meal Carolina’s Dinner on Sept. 8, 2009. “I saw the signs and thought it sounded plan holders, including student-ath- good. We love the good ol’ Fountain,” said Whitehead. lete meal plans, coaches plans, and and we worked with them to deter- Campus residents to eat at Case administrator plans. Gilmore also said University Din- mine what our new arrangement was Dining Hall would create probing previously required students who going to be,” Gilmore said. “What we lems, because students need to eat lived on Central all agreed was that quickly between classes. Campus to apply to “We couldn’t accommodate Carwe would give access eat at Case Dining to Avent Ferry and roll, Bowen, Metcalf, Turlington, Hall. Wood Hall residents Alexander, Tucker, Owen, Avent “They limited it and then we looked Ferry and Wood Halls without to a certain number at the cluster on creating a line and then we would of students in those Central Campus and have upset students because they residential halls,” said ‘OK, we have to are trying to get to class in a short Gilmore said. “It’s a amount of time,” Gilmore said. remove someone.’” small space that can Megan Perry, a freshman in First Ac cord i ng to well accommodate Gilmore, Tucker and Year College, said she’s upset that a small number of Owen Hall residents Tucker and Owen Hall residents students and Cenare not able to eat at can’t eat at Case Dining Hall this tral Campus would Case Dining Hall year. benef it the most “My upperclassmen friends told this year because from having access they are much clos- me how good it was and I thought I Blanca Cohen, junior in to Case [Dining biological sciences er to Fountain than would be able to eat there, but now Hall].” Wood and Avent its sucks because they changed the Gilmore said Unirules,” Perry said. “It was also very Ferry residents. versity Dining had growing amounts “It makes more sense for those two close and convenient.” of requests this past year from Wood residential halls, that have very little Blanca Cohen, a junior in bioHall and Avent Ferry residents to eat access to anything to eat at Case [Dinat Case Dining Hall. ing Hall],” Gilmore said. DINING continued page 3 “We went to [University] Housing Gilmore said allowing all Central
“...Case can’t contain that many students, but it just depends on what’s convenient and what’s not convenient.”
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POLICE continued page 3
The Centennial Campus Challenge will allow students to begin camping out Sunday as part of a week-long College of Engineering tradition. The Centennial Campus Challenge began in 2008, when seniors in chemical engineering decided to create the event on Centennial Campus to give the College of Engineering an identity and to spark social networking between students of different engineering departments, according to the Centennial Campus Challenge website. The first co-chairs of the event were Garrett Swindlehurst and Robert Bradley. The co-chairs for the 2010 event are Alex Manasa, senior in aerospace engineering, and Caitlin Winnike, senior in mechanical
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engineering. According to Manasa, co-chair for the event, the challenge is divided into two parts. “There are two main parts to this event, the Engineering Village Challenge (EVC) and the Greatest Engineers Challenge (GEC),” Manasa said. According to Manasa, the two parts have different goals, but in both, teams can win prize money. “In the EVC, students form teams and camp out on the field next to BTEC alongside Oval Drive. These teams earn points when the team members swipe-in during the check points; one in the morning and one at night,” Manasa said. “Whichever team has the highest score by the end of the week wins $500. Second place is $100, third is $50.” Teams in the GEC do not have check-in points. Instead these teams build designated items. “In the GEC, student teams are given a specific amount of materials each night during the week and are told to
CHALLENGE continued page 3
Bell Tower lit red shows Wolfpack pride See page 6.
O’Brien addresses media at press conference See page 8.
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NC State Bookstores CALL FOR ENTRIES!
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