On Wednesday, March 26, residence halls at Western Illinois University (WIU) in Macomb, Ill. were placed on lockdown due to a shooting threat. A handwritten note was found in a drop-box of an off-campus apartment complex, in which the anonymous writer indicated that there would be a shooting on the campus that day. The note was found early in the morning on March 26 by a worker at the complex, who then contacted the authorities.  

Though classes were not cancelled, the WIU residence halls were secured, so as to allow only those authorized students with keys to enter the buildings. In addition, students were granted permission to miss classes for the day without being penalized. The University was able to inform its student body of the lockdown by posting a news release on its website by 9:30 a.m. WIU then activated its Emergency Alert System, which sends e-mails and text messages to students. These messages informed the students to read the release posted online.

At 12:10 p.m. on March 26, an “all campus announcements” post was made on the Monmouth College message board by Mohsin Masood, association dean of students and director of residence life. Masood stated, “Monmouth College has informed the local law enforcement authorities who will make extra rounds on the MC campus…[T]he WIU threat is NOT DIRECTED at Monmouth College in any way. However, the additional security and police rounds on the MC campus have been arranged as a precautionary measure.”

With this threat coming just weeks after the tragic shooting at Northern Illinois University of February 14, 2008, the issue of campus security has fallen under greater scrutiny nationwide. Many in the college setting have begun to ponder how they would go about handling a similar crisis.

In order to be properly informed and updated during a campus emergency, Monmouth College students are encouraged to register for the ClearTxt system. Similar to Western’s Emergency Alert System, ClearTxt will notify MC students of campus emergencies by cell phone (through calls and text messaging) or computer (through e-mails and “pop-up” windows). ClearTxt at Monmouth College was instituted in the fall 2007 semester. Those interested in registering for ClearTxt should contact Stephanie Kinkaid, secretary in the Office of Student Affairs, at 457-2114.

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