I will remain neutral, just interested in what others think about this:
He has to do what is right for him. It is a good opportunity. If he is uncomfortable about concealed carry, then it make even more sense.
It will be interesting to watch. Is this the beginning of a series of moves by UT Profs and administrators or is this isolated? idk.
They may pick up some faculty. They may lose more. They may pick up some students who might not otherwise attend. And some kids may decide to go to other schools. In the end, like other choices that institutions/businesses make there will be pluses and minuses. You hope the pluses outweigh the minuses but sometimes that isn’t the case. We shall see.
It will be interesting to see if GPAs at UT start rising because profs will be afraid of getting shot over a C.
And I’m not kidding, either. That was precisely the concern one UT faculty member expressed when talking about this.
I have a friend who is a prof at a midwest LAC and last week a colleague was shoved off her feet by a student distraught over their semester. It was not planned, it just was a 19 yr old overwhelmed by the prospect of a relatively minor failure. Their dean has okayed carrying pepper spray.
“It will be interesting to see if GPAs at UT start rising because profs will be afraid of getting shot over a C.”
If I were the prof, I would:
1.) Stop giving grades back in class. Post them on-line before the weekend, so they have a couple days to calm down.
2.) Give more smaller grades during the semester instead of only a mid-term and a final.
3.) Have a generous policy of rounding grades up.
4.) Send notes early in the semester to all students off to a slow start, inviting them to office hours for guidance.
From the UT website:
Does anyone know,the story as to why Texas felt this law was needed?
Is this protest still on?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/texas-sex-toy-protest_us_561ae50fe4b0e66ad4c85480
[quote]
While bringing a loaded gun to class will be completely kosher under Texas law come next fall semester, it will still be against Texas penal code to bring a phallic sex toy to the lecture hall./
[quote]
@gator88NE “We estimate that fewer than 1 percent of UT students have licenses to carry.”
Still, UT has over 50,000 students, so even 1 percent of students is a lot of guns on campus.
“I have a friend who is a prof at a midwest LAC and last week a colleague was shoved off her feet by a student distraught over their semester. It was not planned, it just was a 19 yr old overwhelmed by the prospect of a relatively minor failure. Their dean has okayed carrying pepper spray.”
With the sky high cost of college and a weak job market, students are under a lot of pressure. I am not surprised that is sometimes boils over like this.
I am guessing that grades, pass rates, and graduation rates at UT are all about to improve. The higher graduation rates will then improve their ranking. lol
“Does anyone know,the story as to why Texas felt this law was needed?”
This is about politics and philosophical perspective and about using the public university to express them. On both sides
With the frequency that my D and her friends seem to drop their cell phones, I would be concerned about a student dropping a loaded gun during class.
“It will be interesting to see if GPAs at UT start rising because profs will be afraid of getting shot over a C.
And I’m not kidding, either. That was precisely the concern one UT faculty member expressed when talking about this.”
Except that 1) if someone is willing to kill you for a B, they aren’t concerned about the law changing on carrying a gun. They are already willing to break a pretty big law. And 2) They could kill you on the sidewalk or parking lot today. The law just extends the right to carry to buildings and dorms.
Professors are more likely than students to be armed as they are all over the age of 21 and it is quite expensive in relative terms to own a gun, pass the class and maintain the permit.
FWIW - open carry (not on campus) went into effect in January and I have yet to see a gun in plain sight two months later.
Why the legislature thought this was a good law to pass over the objections of all the universities is obviously political and probably off limits for discussion here. Of course there are groups called Students for Concealed Carry etc. who believe they have a right to defend themselves in an active shooter situation.
With regards to dropping guns and accidental discharge:
UT Austin Policy:
" A license holder who carries a handgun on campus must carry it in a holster that completely covers the trigger and the entire trigger guard area. The holster must have sufficient tension or grip on the handgun to retain it in the holster even when subjected to unexpected jostling.
A license holder who carries a semiautomatic handgun on campus must carry it without a chambered round of ammunition."
UT Austin appears to be doing its best to limit problems without breaking the law.
^ Yeah, like people will always read before stepping on campus exactly what they are suppose to do.
Even police officers discharge their guns accidently. Use to work with them in a building and it happened. And they have lots of experience/training.
The person most likely to get hurt by a gun is the owner. I’m far more worried about an increase in killing others.
With that said, students and guns don’t mix. Too much drinking and a high prevalence of mental illness.
@gettingschooled "if someone is willing to kill you for a B, they aren’t concerned about the law changing on carrying a gun. "
I agree with you about premeditated incidents.
I was thinking of that emotional moment when a student gets a failing grade or his girlfriend dumps him. He is upset and has a gun on him, and that is a bad combination.
@PNWedwonk , my kids sure hope it is! Am I still being neutral if I say it is ridiculous to ban sex toys but not guns on a college campus? 
I think the main problem I see is enforcement. A bunch of emotionally-charged college students, stress, alcohol and guns on a college campus seems like a bad combination. There are so many factors and so many restrictions.
Ack post 16 should say that I’m worried about suicide than killing others. Stupid brain fog.