We need change. We need:

• Locks on all classroom and educational building doors
• Alert Carolina to send out messages in Spanish for personnel who cannot understand English
• Routine lockdown drills
• Effective threat response plan and training for students and faculty

I don't think we thought it would happen to us until it did. And here we are. Gun violence has become embedded in our educational culture, and that is not okay. On August 27th alone, five mass shootings occurred across the U.S., in Colorado, Ohio, and Michigan. Until this fundamental change is made, we must become prepared. That means change for our school, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 

During the events of the shooting, many students discovered in horror that their classroom doors lacked locks. As well, many hall entrances remained open to the public, despite the keycard system. We need all educational buildings, especially classrooms, to have proper locks. How can we protect ourselves if we cannot have this simple safety measure?

Students at Lenoir Dining Hall discovered that the personnel who could not understand much English were not aware of the active shooting. One student used their Spanish skills from high school to communicate that the danger to these personnel.