University Hall at Ohio State University.

OSU Creates Safety Task Force After Shooting Death Near Campus

  • By Yvonne Marquez
  • October 19, 2020

Ohio State University announced the establishment of a task force to review safety issues on campus and the surrounding neighborhoods near the university on Thursday. The task force was created in the wake of the shooting death of 23-year-old OSU student, Chase Meola on Oct. 11.

“We lost a beloved student to an act of senseless, criminal violence this week,” Kristina M. Johnson, president of OSU, said in a university-wide email. “Chase Meola was an extraordinary friend to so many in our Buckeye community. We deeply grieve his loss. This crime has left members of our community feeling anxious and concerned about safety.”

Meola, a 5th year marketing student, was found shot to death in a parking lot of a former fraternity house near campus at a party. Eighteen-year-old Kinte Mitchell Jr. was charged with murder in connection with the death of Meola. Mitchell is being held on $5 million bond.

The University Task Force on Community Safety and Well-Being will meet “to identify, implement and advocate for additional approaches that address violence, crime, and high-risk activities and behaviors.” The task force will deliver an initial report before the Thanksgiving holiday next month and will continue to work throughout the year.

The task force will be co-chaired by Melissa Shivers, vice president of the Office of Student Life, and Jay Kasey, senior vice president of the Office of Administration and Planning.

“The work of the task force will combine expertise from multiple partners to find practical, convergent solutions that we can apply and implement without delay,” Kasey said in a press release.

The task force will include OSU students, faculty, staff, parents, law enforcement professionals from OSUPD, public health professionals, representatives of neighborhoods in the University District, Ohio State Student Legal Services, and representatives from Columbus City Council and the Office of the Mayor.

About the Author

Yvonne Marquez is senior editor of Spaces4Learning and Campus Security and Life Safety. She can be reached at [email protected]

Featured

  • How Cloud Security Solutions Are Transforming Campus Safety

    Campus administrators today face a challenging mandate: deliver stronger security across their facilities while working within tighter budget constraints. From school districts focused on student safety to hospitals protecting patients and staff, the question remains the same: how do you build security infrastructure that evolves with your needs without requiring massive capital investments? Read Now

  • Rethinking Campus Security From the Inside

    For decades, campus security strategies focused on keeping threats outside school walls. But since the tragedy at Columbine High School, data has shown that many attacks begin inside the building, often in classrooms and corridors. This shift has prompted schools to rethink security from the inside and place greater emphasis on interior elements such as classroom doors. This shift is evidenced by a new generation of classroom door systems engineered to delay inside intruders and an ASTM standard that raises the bar on how these systems must be designed to defend against attack. Read Now

  • AI in Security: Advancing Campus Safety and Considerations for Implementing

    Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to capture attention across every sector, and the physical security industry is no exception. Once seen as experimental, AI-enabled analytics now underpin how organizations monitor environments, detect threats, and make decisions. What was once futuristic is now a practical necessity for safety professionals managing growing volumes of data, tighter resources, and increasing expectations for faster, more accurate responses. Read Now

  • How Cloud Security Solutions Are Transforming Campus Safety

    Campus administrators today face a challenging mandate: deliver stronger security across their facilities while working within tighter budget constraints. From school districts focused on student safety to hospitals protecting patients and staff, the question remains the same: how do you build security infrastructure that evolves with your needs without requiring massive capital investments? Read Now

Most   Popular