For University Police Chief Joe LeMire, it’s a matter of balancing respect for the law and public and personal safety on campus.
LeMire said the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh is thoughtfully balancing the rights afforded to citizens under the state’s new concealed-carry law while it preserves and reaffirms its existing stance that academic, residence and other University buildings remain off limits to guns and other weapons.
“This is the right thing to do by our state and for our campus community’s overall safety and well-being,” LeMire said. “We have a duty to uphold and respect Wisconsin state law, and we have an equal obligation to provide a safe, nurturing learning and work environment for our more than 13,600 students and 1,700 faculty and staff members. They will benefit from an uninterrupted sense of security already pervasive throughout our campus.”
The new state of Wisconsin concealed-carry law allows residents to obtain permits and carry concealed firearms in public. It goes into effect on Nov. 1.
Until Nov. 1, UW System campuses are abiding by the current provisions of Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter 18, which completely prohibits weapons on state university campuses.
Throughout the 26-institution UW System, colleges and campuses have been individually updating their policies on weapons to live within the new law.
UW Oshkosh will continue its long-observed rule and policy disallowing guns and other kinds of weapons, including knives, electric-energy weapons and any and all facsimiles of weapons, inside campus buildings.
Provisions in the new state law allow universities to continue prohibiting weapons in campus buildings provided they display uniform signage at entrances. They also specify the creation of contractual provisions that make students, faculty and staff aware of local, campus-based rules and ordinances.
UW Oshkosh is in the process of developing building signage and ensuring existing campus policies remain aligned with the law. Few adjustments are necessary.
The University has detailed provisions for its standing ban on weapons in University buildings within multiple campus policies and student handbooks, such as the Department of Residence Life’s “Community Rights & Responsibilities Handbook.” Language specifies that guns and reproductions of guns — even toys that resemble guns — are not allowed within university buildings. The rules are designed to promote the overall sense of safety throughout campus.
“UW Oshkosh has long practice of keeping our students, faculty and staff up to date and in the know about laws and rules that govern campus safety,” Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Petra Roter said. “The new law gives us the opportunity to further strengthen the essential understanding that, as members of a caring and compassionate campus community, we are all responsible for respecting and preserving one another’s rights and personal safety.”
Compliance with and public education regarding the new law, as with any other new piece of state legislation, are an ongoing processes, LeMire said.
He said he and his UW System counterparts who lead university police departments throughout Wisconsin are communicating regularly to share best practices to ensure their constituencies are up to speed on the rights and rules on the books in Madison and from campus to campus.
“We’re trying to find that proper balance between the safety of students, faculty and staff, and the safeguarding of rights those who have obtained conceal-carry permits,” LeMire said.
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