Universities in the Greater Houston area are finalizing their policies for campus carry, which takes effect Aug. 1. The law, known as Senate Bill 11, permits concealed carrying of handguns on college campuses and requires public institutions to allow guns on parts of their campuses with exceptions.

SB 11 takes effect Aug. 1 for four-year institutions and Aug. 1, 2017, for junior colleges. Open carry, also known as House Bill 910, which allows licence holders to openly carry holstered handguns in public spaces, is still prohibited at all colleges.

TOM-2016-07-21-1Local universities

The University of Houston system’s four presidents must sign weapons policies for their respective locations at the main, downtown, Clear Lake and Victoria campuses.

As of July 1, Shawn Lindsey, director of media relations and digital programming, said the main and downtown campus policies had been signed. It is unknown whether the policies for the Clear Lake and Victoria campuses had been approved.

“In drafting our policy, it was not an issue of whether individuals agreed or disagreed with the law—our task was to draft a policy that is compliant with the law and protects the health and safety of the campus community,” said Marcilynn Burke, associate dean of the UH Law Center and chairwoman of the UH Campus Carry Work Group.

All four policies identify sporting venues, health facilities and some residential facilities as exclusion zones, which are areas identified by the school or the law as being gun-free. Guns are allowed in faculty and staff offices except those within exclusion zones.

Private institutions can opt out of campus carry. In Houston, Rice University, Houston Baptist University and the University of St. Thomas have decided to opt out.

Clemente Rodriguez, patrol operations captain for the Rice University Police Department, said campus violence could increase and officers’ safety could be at risk if students were permitted to carry handguns.

“College-aged students are prone to more risky behavior, such as drug use, alcohol abuse and depression,” he said. “If you add weapons on campus to that mix, there is a potential for more harm than good.”

Handguns are still banned at collegiate sporting events, but Traci Bennett, assistant district attorney for Harris County, said an exception is made if the handgun is being used as part of the sporting event.

TOM-2016-07-21-2Junior colleges

Junior colleges have another year to implement campus carry. In the meantime, the Houston Community College and Lone Star College systems are watching how four-year institutions’ policies are received before crafting their own.

“At this point in time the [review] committee has basically been soliciting terms and ideas,” HCC Chief of Police Greg Cunningham said.

He said excluding guns from areas such as child care facilities was common sense.

“We don’t have a hospital, but those are the kind of places [that could be exclusion zones],” Cunningham said.

LSCS Chief of Police Paul Willingham said the college is using town hall meetings to gather information from the community. Potential exclusion zones for the college system include locker rooms or rooms with dangerous equipment.

Willingham disagreed with Rodriguez’s opinion that allowing concealed weapons on campus would lead to increased campus violence.

“Some people, I think just because they hear the word gun they think it’s going to be a shootout,” Willingham said. “Nobody really anticipates that.”