A recent example: An early morning bomb scare closed down Bainbridge College in Bainbridge, Georgia earlier this week. The college was already on heightened alert for gang-related activity. The bomb threat turned out to be a false alarm but authorities used the experience as a training opportunity. Bainbridge College’s campus is usually pretty quiet during the summer. But Wednesday morning, a bomb threat completely cleared the campus of students. “I wasn’t there this morning,” said a criminal justice student. “But they said it was chaos and for me, I’m glad I wasn’t here.” Just the day before, someone called authorities about a possible shooting. The college sent students an email warning to be on the lookout for gang-related activity. “It makes me feel threatened at the school,” the student explained. “Because you see all these things that are going on at different schools across the country.”

Security Magazine has numerous stories in its archive on college and university security. Go to www.securitymagazine.com