It’s been eight years since a lone gunman killed 32 people at Virginia Tech, then took his own life. In that time, colleges and universities have made many changes designed to prevent future tragedies, but real and growing problems remain as Sandy Hausman reports.
Media coverage of mass shootings in this country could help to head off future attacks by making people more likely to report evolving problems. Allen Groves is Dean of Students at the University of Virginia.
"There’s no question that students today know that they have an obligation to come forward if they have a concern about health and safety."
But Gene Deisinger, an international expert on campus security who recently retired from Virginia Tech, says news reports could lead to other shootings.
"That small group of people among us see all the attention and it fosters their own progression down a pathway to violence, sometimes with an intent to beat the casualty numbers that have come before them."
While few people suffering mental illness become violent, the numbers of students battling serious psychiatric problems at college is growing. Tim Davis is Director of UVA’s Counseling & Psychological Services.
"They do come onto grounds, sometimes with established mental health diagnoses, serious diagnoses, whether it’s bi-polar or history of suicide attempts or disabling anxiety, and when they come they seek mental health support in large quantities."
Doug Searcy, Vice President at the University of Mary Washington, agrees.
"Students that come to college campuses are more often now on medication -- anywhere between 11 and 13% of students who come to us. That hasn’t been the case historically."
And this year, UCLA’s annual survey of in-coming freshmen found the lowest level of emotional well-being in over 30 years. Again, UVA’s Tim Davis.
"Stress is up, depression is up, time in extracurricular is down, time with friends is down."
At Virginia Commonwealth University, psychiatrist Dr. Bela Sood says mental illness is likely on campus in part because drugs and alcohol can precipitate problems, but also because psychiatric problems are widespread in our culture.
"The statistics indicate that one in five individuals have some sort of mental illness which requires intervention. You are going to have a community of individuals on any campus who are going to have this, surrounded by substance abuse, surrounded by conditions which cause insomnia," she says.
Fortunately, Tim Davis adds, students are more willing to admit they’re having problems and to seek help.
"The stigma about needing mental services, thank goodness, is coming down. We think that is going to accentuate the demand. Our demand is up 92% in the last 11 years."
But Mary Washington’s Doug Searcy says not all schools have the resources to provide on-going support.
"Many institutions have a short-term model, 6 -12 sessions per student. We don’t really limit those at this time but there are times we may have to refer out to a professional in the community."
As schools look for ways to help students adjust to college life, and to make their setting safer, there's one other important issues that experts debate. Virginia Tech spokesman Mark Owczarski says universities must strike a balance between strong security and an appropriate climate for learning.
"We strive to create open communities, open doors, both literally and figuratively, so that people can come together to exchange ideas, and yet you overlay that with public safety and you want to put locks on doors and create safety barriers. It’s an incredible challenge."
He says Tech has spent tens of millions of dollars to make its campus more secure, but in the end, tragedy can strike anywhere for any reason. All you can do is be vigilant, prepared and maintain a sense of community - an on-going challenge since every year new students and faculty arrive.
