Bismarck State College experienced one burglary, one motor vehicle theft, two arrests for liquor law violations and one arrest for a drug violation in 2007. The school also disciplined 17 students for liquor law violations on campus.
A hotbed of criminal activity it is not.
But the college, acting on national events and a desire to be proactive, has moved to create the Bismarck State College Police Department, which will be made up of one armed officer and another unarmed guard. The school also will continue to contract with Bismarck-Mandan Security.
Arming security in higher education has been a hot topic since the April 2007 Virginia Tech shooting, which killed 33 people including the shooter. Some people feel armed security guards or an armed campus police force will keep students, faculty and staff safer, while others fear that more guns on campuses will increase the number of gun-related deaths.