Texas Wesleyan must decide whether to allow concealed handguns on campus

In less than a year, students and professors will be able to carry concealed handguns on to the campuses of many Texas colleges and universities.

The question Tuesday was whether Texas Wesleyan University — a small private college just east of downtown — will be one of them.

Students weighed in on both sides of the issue during an open forum before TWU President Fred Slabach.

Some say they don’t feel safe now and would like to be able to protect themselves in a crowded classroom or as they walk to class at night. Others say guns on campus is a bad idea because weapons can impact the educational atmosphere.

“We have an epidemic on our hands with gun violence,” said Austen Fillingim, a 21-year-old junior from Arlington. “There’s no evidence that more guns make people safer.”

But it is an issue of public safety, said Alcira Katagiri, a 23-year-old junior from Arlington.

“I fear for my life ... when I go to class every day,” he said. “Why not give us the possibility, the potential, to defend ourselves?”

These arguments came during an hour-long forum at TWU, which is geared to help students, faculty and officials learn more about the issue before university officials decide whether to allow the guns on campus.

The issue of where — or whether — to allow concealed handguns on college campuses statewide has been heating up since lawmakers earlier this year passed a measure known as “campus carry,” letting licensed Texans carry concealed handguns at universities starting next August and at community colleges in 2017.

Private colleges such as Texas Wesleyan and Texas Christian University may opt out, if they so choose, and public universities may create gun-free zones on part, but not all, of the campus.

“Private universities could opt to ban concealed weapons entirely ... or they could carve out participating areas,” Slabach told dozens of students who gathered for the forum Tuesday.

But before private universities may decide whether to allow guns on campus, they are required to get feedback from students and faculty.

A separate measure allowing licensed Texans to openly carry holstered handguns throughout the state goes into effect Jan. 1 but does not apply to college campuses.

Sitting ducks?

Slabach noted that campus security is already being ramped up. A new security firm has been hired, a higher level of training is being required of them and three full-time armed retired police officers will soon be helping with security.

While that is appreciated, it’s not guaranteed to keep students safe, said Caleb Mitchell, a 25-year-old graduate student from Longview.

For instance, he said, he takes a class with more than 100 other students in a TWU classroom that has one door.

“If someone were to walk in there, we are sitting ducks,” Mitchell said. “By the time someone got there, we all would be gone.”

At the same time, at least one professor said he doesn’t want to have to change the way he teaches to avoid upsetting a student and potentially provoking a dangerous situation.

“The purpose of a university is to provide an education,” said Jay Brown, a psychology professor at Texas Wesleyan. “The university classroom is an emotionally charged experience. ... I would hate to think I would have to edit my feedback to students.”

The issue

Texans with concealed handgun licenses have been able to carry on college campuses, but not in buildings, since lawmakers approved the concealed carry law 20 years ago, lawmakers say.

This new measure lets them carry them into dorms or classrooms, instead of requiring them to take their handguns back to their vehicles before entering the buildings.

The only people legally allowed to carry concealed handguns on campus are those who have a concealed handgun permit, meaning they are at least 21 and have met various requirements including training and passing proficiency tests.

Officials at public colleges have said the plan could cost nearly $50 million in coming years — because additional officers, training, storage facilities and security technology would be needed — and that expense that might be passed to students.

About 850,000 Texans have concealed handgun licenses.

‘I came to learn’

Some say that Texas Wesleyan University officials, who could make a decision on the issue in January, must make the right decision.

Breanna Lockwood said she understands that many people are afraid of guns. But she said that fear isn’t worth sacrificing anyone’s life.

“Fear does not trump a God given right, a constitutional right,” the 20-year-old Arlington junior who plans to get a concealed handgun license as soon as she’s 21. “We are not safe anywhere any more. That’s just the harsh reality.”

But Zahraa Saheb, a 19-year-old junior originally from Iraq, said that doesn’t mean concealed handguns should be allowed on campus.

“When I came to a university, ... I came to learn,” said Saheb, vice president of the TWU Student Government Association. “Wesleyan is not ready for guns.”

This story was originally published November 3, 2015 at 3:54 PM with the headline "Texas Wesleyan must decide whether to allow concealed handguns on campus."