Message From Chancellor Addresses Campus Safety, Concerns and Questions

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Chancellor Joseph E. Steinmetz.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – University of Arkansas Chancellor Joseph E. Steinmetz sent the following message to all members of the campus community on Monday, April 24:

Dear Campus Community:

Providing a safe and secure environment for students, faculty, staff and campus visitors is vitally important to the University of Arkansas. It’s our highest priority. We know you share this value and want you to know we are committed to the best possible implementation of the state’s new concealed carry laws, Acts 562 and 859, that will be implemented Sept. 1, 2017.

The university is developing a new online resource where information specific to campus safety, including information about Acts 562 and 859, will be housed. Act 562 will allow individuals (age 21 or over) with concealed handgun permits, who have also successfully completed enhanced certification training, to carry concealed handguns on public college campuses and in other public places with some exclusions as defined in Act 859.

The University of Arkansas System office has provided initial guidance on the new laws, allowing individual campuses to begin the process of developing campus-specific details and information ahead of the Sept. 1 implementation.

Concealed handguns will not be allowed at athletic events or in the Jean Tyson Child Development Study Center, nor will they be allowed to be stored in residence halls. However, we know the campus community has many other questions related to the new laws. We want to gather all those questions and provide answers as soon as possible.

Members of the campus community who have specific questions, not already answered by the guidance provided by the UA System, about how the new laws will be implemented on campus are asked to send them to uarkinfo@uark.edu. University leadership will review the submitted questions and will continue to work closely with our campus community and state law enforcement to provide answers, information and guidance about the new laws. 

This information will be incorporated into the safety website now being developed. We plan to launch the website in June, a few months before the law goes into effect. More discussions will follow but I wanted to let you know we’re working very hard to on the transition to the new concealed carry law.

Thank you for your patience as we work together to implement the law.

Joseph E. Steinmetz

Chancellor