ODU report outlines campus-safety changes after Norfolk shooting

Old Dominion University released a redacted independent report July 28 on the March 12 shooting at Constant Hall, outlining campus-safety recommendations and changes the university says it is pursuing before students return to its Norfolk campus August 24.

The Cooley LLP post-action report characterized the incident as a targeted terror attack against ROTC students and their leader. It said the attack would have been difficult or impossible to prevent while identifying gaps involving physical security, emergency response, information sharing, threat assessment and screening of readmitted students.

What the report found

The report found that ODU did not know about the student’s prior conviction. It also said the university was not informed by law enforcement or the student’s probation officer.

Associated Press reporting on the review said Virginia law restricted the university’s ability to require criminal-history disclosures during admission or readmission. The report said ODU did not conduct post-admission background checks and had not asked the student to voluntarily disclose a criminal history when he was readmitted.

The public version includes redactions intended to protect student privacy, so it may not contain every underlying detail. Its findings should be understood as conclusions attributed to the independent review, separate from ODU’s statements about its response and its ongoing implementation work.

Changes ODU says it is pursuing

ODU said it is upgrading cameras and locks and installing emergency Knox boxes containing master keys in campus buildings. The university also said it is restricting access to specific classroom-location information at the course level.

The university said it is upgrading its 911 dispatch system through renovation of the ODU Inn into a Public Safety Building. ODU also said it is conducting joint training with regional law-enforcement agencies and expanding the availability of automated external defibrillators and Stop the Bleed kits.

ODU said it is streamlining its emergency alert system to speed up messaging and shifting employees to an opt-out default for alerts. Those changes could affect how students, faculty and staff receive urgent information during the academic year.

Screening and threat assessment

ODU said it has expanded its post-admission criminal-background questionnaire to include readmitted students. The university also said it is expanding staffing and strengthening resources in its Office of Threat Assessment.

Those steps address recommendations involving post-admission risk assessment and the university’s ability to identify and respond to potential threats. ODU separately said it has conducted crisis-response and threat-prevention training for the campus community, but the university has not said every recommendation is complete.

Why it matters before August 24

Students are expected to return to the Norfolk campus August 24, putting the report’s recommendations and ODU’s implementation work directly ahead of the fall semester. Building access, camera coverage, emergency equipment, alert enrollment and classroom-location information are among the areas students and employees may notice changing.

ODU President Brian O. Hemphill said the university would move quickly to fully implement the recommendations. The university has not provided a completion date for every measure, however, and the redacted public report leaves open questions about timelines, remaining gaps and how ODU will assess the effectiveness of the changes.

Sources

• Old Dominion University: Release of Cooley Independent Report
• Associated Press: Virginia university didn't know of student's conviction before campus shooting, report says
• Virginia Mercury: Independent Review Calls for Campus Safety Overhaul at Old Dominion University After Fatal Shooting