South Coast colleges respond to Brown shooting with increased patrols

The tragic shooting at Brown University continues to spread fear and anxiety throughout the region, but local colleges have stepped up to enhance security presence on their campuses, and, in some cases, have canceled final classes and exams as an extra precaution. 

Universities from Cambridge to New Haven and from Bridgewater State to Bristol Community College are increasing patrols of uniformed and plainclothes officers, reaching out to students to remind them to stay vigilant and safe, and refreshing their communities on emergency protocols they must know — but hopefully never have to use. 

“My heart goes out to the Brown community,” said Glen Anderson, chief of police at Bridgewater State. “We made some adjustments after this, and it has to be a way of doing business for us to really keep everyone safe.”

“Your awareness and vigilance are pivotal in safeguarding our institution,” wrote Sedgwick Harris, the president of Bristol Community College, in an email blast to students and staff.

Meanwhile, administrators at Providence College and the University of Rhode Island cancelled all in-person exams out of an abundance of caution. Harvard, Yale, MIT, and other New England universities have dramatically increased their police and security presence while students finish their semesters, according to media reports.

The Saturday shooting that killed two students and injured nine others has left the Brown community shaken. In the days since, many have called into question the campus’ security protocols. A petition calling for keycard access to all Brown buildings at all times, which has historically not been the case, had 713 signatures as of Dec. 17. 

Brian Clark, a Brown spokesperson, said that most buildings on college campuses are “open and accessible” during regular hours and card-accessible at night.

“We would hope people understand that college campuses are more like cities than corporate headquarters or a school in a self-contained building with one or a few points of entry,” he said. “Just like cities and communities across the country, most spaces on campuses do not have guards or gates at every point of access.”

“This is common across the nation and is the case at Brown for many buildings, including academic buildings, the campus center, athletics facilities and many facilities with administrative offices,” he continued. “Brown has heightened security on campus considerably in recent days, and we will do a large-scale systematic security review of the entire campus. We know we live in a different time.”

The city itself is also on high alert. Rhode Island and Providence-based authorities said during a news conference Monday that security would be enhanced across the state, especially in the capital.

“Providence public schools are open,” said Providence Mayor Brett Smiley at the conference. “We have police coverage at drop-off and pickup times to provide that extra sense of safety and security for our families.”

The tragedy has rattled Rhode Island, which has not witnessed a mass shooting event in years, and has brought a spotlight onto its capital in the waning moments of the year.

What we know — the latest updates on the Brown shooting

The gunman who murdered two students and wounded another nine shortly after 4 p.m. on Saturday has not yet been apprehended. On Tuesday, Providence police and the FBI released more footage of a person of interest in the case and offered up to $50,000 for details resulting in the identification, arrest and conviction of the suspect. 

Officials described the person of interest as an approximately 5’8” man with a “stocky build,” saying he should be considered “armed and dangerous.”

The deceased are MukhammadAziz Umurzokov, 18, a freshman and immigrant from Uzbekistan with aspirations to be a neurosurgeon, and Ella Cook, 19, a sophomore from Alabama and leader in the college’s Republican Club. 

Of the wounded, seven remain hospitalized with one in critical condition.   

The suspect remains unidentified despite the 1,200 cameras on university property. Authorities have said there were few cameras inside the Barus and Holley Building, where the shootings took place, due to its age. 

“Brown’s security cameras do not extend to every hallway, classroom, laboratory and office across the 250+ buildings on campus,” Clark said. “For security reasons, it is not prudent to share where cameras are and are not relative to individual buildings and locations. What we can share is that Brown has and will continue to cooperate fully with the law enforcement agencies conducting this investigation.” 

“We have and will continue to provide investigators with any and all security camera footage they need, including from the engineering complex of three connected buildings that includes Barus & Holley, the Engineering Research Center and Prince Lab.”

According to The Providence Journal, a newly built center operated by the Providence Police Department with access to 150 video feeds at any given time did not have any feeds from the area at the time of the shooting. The images fed into the center mostly come from private businesses and residences who agree to connect to the system.

A total of 11,005 students attend Brown University, according to the school’s website. Of those, 7,272 were undergraduates. Though known as a place where the wealthy send their children, about 15% of students are the first in their families to attend college. About 44% of students identify as persons of color and 46% of the class of 2028 received need-based financial aid.

South Coast colleges respond

Intense international media focus can sometimes miss small but important local details, including that southeastern Massachusetts has a deeply interconnected relationship with Rhode Island. Though state boundaries are heavy on a map, the hundreds of thousands who live, work, commute, dine, or recreate in this region feel the same fear and uncertainty on both sides of the border.

At UMass Dartmouth, the large public university that draws from the cities and towns around New Bedford, Fall River, and Providence, a spokesperson said, “Following the recent tragic shooting at Brown, the University has increased patrols across campus, particularly high-visibility officer foot patrols in academic buildings.”

UMass Dartmouth also “proactively plans for various emergency scenarios through staff training, procedure and process improvements, and community educational opportunities,” the spokesperson said. 

At Bristol Community College, headquartered in Fall River and with New Bedford and Taunton campuses, its new president comforted the community in an email by saying that the college’s “Police Department diligently conducts regular drills to enhance readiness and collaborates seamlessly with local law enforcement and public safety agencies in the event of an emergency.” 

At the New Bedford campus, one officer is on duty during the day, while a contracted security company provides security in the evenings, according to the school’s website.

And Chief Anderson, of Bridgewater State, made himself available to The Light for an extended interview to explain the department’s training and most recent safety precautions.

“We train for tragic events such as the Brown incident routinely,” Anderson said. “We have increased patrols, increased visibility, but we’ve also increased low-profile patrols, such as plainclothes officers in unmarked vehicles.”

“During an incident like this, you get a lot of questions from the community. Everybody is uneasy, not just as a result of what happened at Brown, but [because of] the general violence we see everyday,” Anderson said.

The 21 sworn officers in the Bridgewater police force, plus other civilian dispatchers and support staff, have built a robust network to prevent and respond to campus safety events, Anderson said. The follow-ups include working with mental health counselors in community and campus groups to support students. 

There’s also active shooter training and firearms training, which Anderson said his department participates in more than the state-required minimums. Response training also includes creating mock reunification centers and testing the emergency response system. 

All South Coast colleges have emergency response systems, as required by law, including text and email alerts, plus additional app-based communication on some campuses. These emergency communication systems are part of larger emergency response plans, submitted annually, that detail who is responsible for writing and sending these messages.

The largest focus, according to Anderson, is on prevention. He said his department has a detective’s bureau and a strong partnership with the Lakeville office of the FBI. They work alongside a “multidisciplinary team” across the university that provides mental health support to students.

“That’s the root of what is causing these outcomes that we’ve been seeing for a long time,” Anderson said. 

Anderson said that being open and transparent also goes a long way to building trust and safety. 

“Without the community’s support, no department can truly accomplish their safety goals,” he said. “We do a tremendous amount of outreach … We’re in a good spot. We couldn’t do it without the community.”

As for these still uncertain days before the shooter is apprehended, Anderson encouraged his community to reach out with any questions or concerns. “If you’re not sure, call us. It’s no problem.”

Email Colin Hogan at chogan@newbedfordlight.org. Email Kevin G. Andrade at kandrade@newbedfordlight.org.