The Associated Press
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The House on Tuesday approved creation of an office in the Justice Department to help university security forces train for and prevent violent incidents such as those that hit Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University in recent years.
The National Center for Campus Public Safety would issue grants to campus safety agencies, encourage research into improved college safety and conduct training.
The center would be run through the Justice Department’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program, said Rep. Robert Scott, D-Va., sponsor of the bill with Rep. Louis Gohmert, R-Texas.
The bill, which passed on a voice vote, also cleared the House in the last session of Congress but was not taken up by the Senate.
Supporters cited the need for more coordinated plans to prevent campus violence following the 2007 attack at Virginia Tech where a mentally disturbed man shot 32 students and teachers to death before killing himself, as well as the incident at Northern Illinois where a gunman killed five students before shooting himself.
Related campus safety resources:
Looking at the Virginia Tech massacre from a tactical perspective
Arming campus cops is elementary
Shepherds and Wolves: Thoughts on arming those who protect our schools
Why our schools?
Preparing for a school shooting: 13 lessons learned during a training exercise
10 safety reminders for handling school and student-related calls
School Violence: The psychology of youthful mass murder and what to do about it