Recently, three school shootings occurred in the US. Schools in Kentucky, Texas and California have been the targets of the most recent acts of violence.

The recent school shootings have increased concern among ULM students about their safety on-campus.

In many of the school shootings the assailant was actually a student of the school.

While the majority of the student body feel relatively safe at ULM, many have stated they’ve at times felt unsafe on campus.

“I remember living in Commons my freshman year and when there were no parking spots, I had to park in the dark areas and I was very scared,” Allie Toler, a sophomore Speech Language pathology major said.

A Texas high school student walked into the cafeteria on Jan. 22 and began firing a semi-automatic handgun.

The shooter injured one 15-year-old girl.

He is being charged with two counts of aggravated assault.

Another school shooting transpired in Kentucky a day later.

The shooter, also a student of the school, shot sixteen people resulting in two deaths.

The shooter is being charged with two counts of murder and 12 counts of first degree assault.

In 1990, the Gun-Free School Zones Act was enacted prohibiting weapons on any school property.

However, there have been 138 school shootings since 2010.

Of those shootings, 44 were on college campuses.

Those statistics sparked many debates on the efficiency of the gun control laws.

Gun sales skyrocket after mass shootings like the Las Vegas one in late 2017.

While some point to gun control laws, others point to bullying.

A study in 2014, conducted by Mother Jones found that, “15,000 American high school students found that victims of bullying are nearly twice as likely to carry guns and other weapons at school.”

There are multiple ways to prevent the increasing number of school shootings.

Here at ULM, faculty and staff are not only trained to prevent violent situations but they are also trained to deal with them.

Psychology professor Mary Elizabeth Bridges believes training is necessary.

“I recently participated in the Active Shooter Training for faculty and staff and honestly think everyone on this campus should be required to attend,” Bridges said.

Jessica Alamond, a senior risk management and insurance major, said “More cops patrolling around campus on foot would increase the safety on campus.”

Madison Smith, a freshman pre-pharmacy major said the police are doing the best they can.

“I always see them patrolling and I know if I ever called and needed an escort or them to do anything they would be right there.”

With more school shootings and violence happening today, students and faculty are beginning to understand how to avoid those situations and if all else fails, how to deal with them.