DAYTON — Some University of Dayton students told school leaders they do not feel safe after a shootout on campus.
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UD President Erica Spina said the university’s priority is getting answers for its students and the campus community.
It’s been more than a week since a UD student was hurt in a shooting at a gathering on Evanston Street.
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Police confirmed they’ve arrested a 19-year-old man and three juveniles.
None of the people arrested were students.
However, a spokesperson with the University of Dayton said “The investigation by UD Public Safety and city of Dayton police has yielded five arrests of suspects ages 15 to 19 who are of various races and do not appear to be affiliated with the University. Four of the five suspects were directly involved in the incident, with three of them accused of firing a weapon.”
The shooting sparked discussions about campus safety.
The Student Government Association sponsored a campus town hall on Sunday night.
The SGA and UD administrators heard discussion about anonymous posts made on campus social media platforms that some students believe to be racist.
“We feel, as minorities, like we’re being targeted because we’ll throw stuff for just us and we’ll deal with people coming off campus and really try to be harmful to us,” Robert White, a member of Black Action Through Unity, said.
Dayton police said they do not believe the original shooting incident is race-related.
The university expressed the same belief.
“After dozens of interviews of witnesses and suspects and a review of large amounts of evidence, there is no indication race is a factor in the incident,” the spokesperson said.
Student leaders said the racism seen online is a reaction from people without the facts about the shooting.
President Spina sent out a statement Monday evening, asking the campus community “to work together to maintain the welcoming nature of our student neighborhood while discouraging outsiders who have negative intentions.”
“And just as importantly, we must better educate all students about the value of diversity – racial, religious, sexual orientation and gender identity, country of origin, and more – and to eliminate, truly eliminate, the insidious, intolerant acts and statements that make students of difference feel vulnerable, less than welcome, and even unsafe," Spina also said.
We will continue to follow this story.
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