As UW students, we hold a certain expectation when it comes to safety and our well-being. We have been in a constant battle with our administration and its lack of spending on our counseling/mental health services and diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that have been getting cut.
And now, we have to worry about our own UWO Police not reporting life threatening disturbances during one of the events with the highest student involvement in Oshkosh.
We have heard many statements regarding the shots fired on Scott Avenue that took place on Saturday. Some of us were nearby, while others had to hear it from word of mouth or YikYak. However, not a single statement was made by the university or its police department. At least not until three days later, but you know, who’s counting.
In this report released by the university police department, they stated that “Titan Alerts are used to inform and direct UWO community members regarding situations that take place on the UWO campus so they can make decisions about their personal safety and, if needed, take shelter.”
Out of our student population, based on 2022 data from U.S. News & World Report, about 32% of UWO students live in campus affiliated or owned housing, while 68% live off campus. Is the university actually concerned about their students’ safety when they didn’t attempt to warn a majority of their student population about an incident that had occurred only four blocks off campus?
As a student that lives on Scott Avenue, where the incident transpired, and was only two blocks away, I’ve never felt more disregarded by a statement.
Where is the “border” for an incident to be considered “on campus”? We get reports about Cherry Street and anything that happens on Irving Avenue.
Scott Avenue, on the other hand, runs up to Halsey and is one of the most populated student housing streets near campus, and we did not get any alerts or an inkling of concern from the university.
We are not disposable. Just because we don’t live directly on your campus does not mean that our safety does not also matter. Why doesn’t the school expand those borders knowing that Pub Crawl is one of the biggest events that students participate in? And did UWOPD not send a Titan Alert because it really was “too far away,” or was it to protect their image? I guess we’ll just leave it to Leavitt to avoid the whys.
