Justice and Education Department officials continue to emphasize that under their interpretation of Title IX, the federal anti-discrimination law in education, schools that receive federal funding may not discriminate based on a student’s sex, which includes a student’s transgender status. The announcement is the latest in a controversial national debate about transgender rights in schools — which most recently includes the legal standoff between the administration and North Carolina over the state’s House Bill 2 that attempts to disallow transgender people access to bathrooms reserved for their gender identity. The guidance letter not only addresses the bathroom issue, but it also touches upon privacy rights, education records and sex-segregated athletics, saying that transgender students have the legal right to identify in school as they choose, according to CNN.

“Schools should let transgender students use bathrooms, locker rooms and other sex-segregated facilities consistent with their gender identity,” the guidance stated. “Staff should address transgender students by their preferred names and pronouns. Schools cannot require students to have a medical diagnosis, undergo any medical treatment, or produce a birth certificate before treating them consistent with their gender identity.”

Several state governors are unhappy about the guidance letter. Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant issued a statement on Friday, telling the Mississippi Department of Education to disregard the guidance. “The directive is nonbonding and does not carry the force of law,” Bryant said. “Because these decisions are better left to the states, and not made at the point of a federal bayonet, Mississippi’s public schools should not participate in the president’s social experiment.”

On the other side, LGBT groups supported the announcement, calling it a validation of transgender rights. "These groundbreaking guidelines not only underscore the Obama administration’s position that discriminating against transgender students is flat-out against the law, but they provide public school districts with needed and specific guidance guaranteeing that transgender students should be using facilities consistent with their gender identity," said Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin in a statement.
 

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A passive approach to campus safety and security simply doesn’t cut it anymore, not if a college or university wants to meet Title IX and Clery Act standards. Not when an estimated one in four women experience sexual assault at some point while in school or university. And not when the fear of an active shooter remains alive.

As a result, more and more institutions are taking the necessary steps to ensure everyone enjoys the peace of mind of a safe environment. Among those initiatives is increasing the visibility of security systems, particularly when it comes to outdoor lighting and emergency communications.

For example, a youth council in Charlottesville, Va., that regularly weighs in on issues that affect the community started circulating a petition in early December requesting the city installs emergency blue light phones in the downtown shopping district.

“I think they have an understanding that the value of the [phones] might be more symbolic than practical, but the research they’ve done has shown that when there are blue light phones crime is less likely to happen,” the Charlottesville Tomorrow reported one student as saying.

A growing number of institutions are being proactive in raising the profile of the safety protocols available at their locations.

The University of Massachusetts recently held a Walk for Light event, which highlighted issues such as lighting problems and overgrown bushes and trees, while the University of Ontario Institute for Technology launched a Yes Means Yes sexual harassment campaign focused on empowering individuals and included a renewed emphasis on the assistance blue light phones can provide. The University of Tennessee emphasized the use of help points after a student was groped while jogging on campus, and Fort Hays State University in Kansas has held annual safety walks that highlight areas on campus that aren’t well lit and may need emergency kiosks.

Central Michigan University even held a Blue Light Fun Run in 2013 that led participants to emergency phone locations around campus to build awareness.

Blue light phones, particularly tower or pedestal models, have seen resurgence in popularity over the past several years for a number of reasons:

• High visibility: LED strobes and area lights make visual identification easy while also serving as a deterrent for crime — a key feature that isn’t always accomplished with surveillance cameras, which often blend into the surrounding environment or are ignored.
• Two-way communication: Cell phones have gotten more sophisticated, but they are by no means a perfect technology. Blue light phones won’t jam, drop calls or have dead batteries, ensuring a reliable link to first responders when help is needed.
• Security hub: Enclosures frequently have the ability to house more than just emergency phones, with items such as public address speakers, surveillance cameras, card readers and automated external defibrillators creating advanced end points dedicated to security.
• More than emergencies: Many people think the only time to use blue light phones is when they need to report a suspicious individual, fire or health emergencies. But they can also come in handy when it comes to situations such as car trouble, malfunctioning parking gates or requesting a late-night escort.

A student at the University of California, Berkeley discovered just how useful that versatility and visibility can be in mid-October. After two men robbed him, the student quickly used one of the many blue light phones located throughout the school’s 1,200-acre campus to contact police, who then were able to quickly apprehend the two suspects and return the stolen items.

During a 2014 webinar covering the topic of school security, Bill Elvey, associate vice chancellor for facilities planning and management at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said blue light phones still play a meaningful role for college campuses.

“I think they are necessary in some capacity if for no other reason than public perception,” Elvey said. “When parents and visitors come to our campus, they expect to see those things and they recognize that when they are out there that connotes a safe, secure campus.”

Regardless of the technology, establishing a visible security system is only one easy-but-necessary step for colleges and universities looking to create a safe environment. But the work doesn’t end with installation. Without continually updating and informing an ever-changing student population, institutions will continue to fight an uphill battle when it comes to campus safety.

Michael Zuidema is the communications manager for Code Blue Corporation, based in Holland, Mich.

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“We are about educating students and increasing the number of Georgians who have completed college,” University System Chancellor Hank Huckaby told AJC.com on May 19. “To continue to do this, we must provide our students, faculty and staff a safe environment, and we will apply best practices at each campus. This is a fundamental change in the way we have been operating across our system of institutions.”

Formed in October 2014, the committee, which also includes four student representatives and a number of other college and university officials, conducted a comprehensive review of policies and procedures at the various USG institutions The committee was charged with developing recommendations related to improvements to public safety, including compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act), and campus law-enforcement agency assessment and training needs.

Following the review, the committee advised that Georgia institutions should “receive specific education and training related to their reporting responsibilities, requests for confidentiality, and Title IX requirements,” according to the report. The committee recommended that training be customized, mandatory and system-wide to ensure consistency and that all standards are met. It further recommended that the schools develop a single, centralized website to maintain, collect and publicize related information. This website should include “clear, specific and comprehensive information about how the USG defines, investigates and resolves incidents of sexual assault, sexual harassment, domestic/dating violence and stalking,” according to the report.

The group’s Clery Act subcommittee further recommended that each institution identify a Clery Act coordinator — as well as a coordinating committee — to provide consistency and guidance. Clear records should also be kept of Clery Act crimes, including geographic information, according to the report.

Recommendations regarding campus law enforcement included better defining the essential functions of campus police departments, and establishing and implementing law enforcement department assessment programs focused on administration, patrol, investigations, communications and campus community policing.

Additional recommendations included the establishment of a public safety committee and training program at each institution, the implementation of a system-wide employee assistance program for public safety personnel to provide support in managing stressful situations and ensuring that security officials are allowed appropriate access to college and university leaders to drive home the importance of campus safety and security.

The full report is available here.

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