Armed Robberies. Gunshots. Alarming Emails. Concerned parents. Students are now questioning their safety on campus. The emails about incidents of crime on and around campus that SUNY Buffalo State students are getting every week have not seemed to change how University Police are doing their jobs.

Why aren’t there any major changes being made to keep students’ safe on campus? Why is it that the parents not being notified? Most of the time it seems like the emails are going into the spam folder.

The following is a synopsis of the emails the students and staff have gotten about incidents that have taken place in and around campus just this semester.

Incident #1– Sept. 3: A Buffalo State College resident student reported to University Police that he was the victim of a knifepoint robbery on August 31, during the evening. The case remains open.

Incident #2– Sept. 7: Early in the morning, a resident student reported to Buffalo Police that he was robbed while walking off campus near the Asarese-Matters Community Ctr at the intersection of Rees Street and Bradley Street. Police still do not have any leading suspects.

Incident #3– Sept. 14: A non-student reported to Buffalo Police during the afternoon, he was robbed at gunpoint at Hawley Street and Letchworth Street. A suspect has still not been identified at this time.

Incident #4– Sept. 29: 12 individuals were involved in a fight at the intersection of Rockwell Road and Rees Street near a parking lot. During the fight, one individual fired a weapon into the air and fled away from the scene. The suspect is now in police custody and the case is closed.

Incident #5– Oct. 8: Two crimes were reported on that day. A Buffalo State College student reported to University Police that he had been robbed at gunpoint while walking off campus near the intersection of Rees Street and Bradley Street next to the Asarese-Matters Community Center basketball courts at night. Around 11 p.m., a second Buffalo State student reported to Buffalo Police that she was the victim of an attempted armed robbery off-campus while sitting in her vehicle in the parking lot near an apartment complex at 100 Forest Ave. A suspect has still had not been identified.

Incident #6– Nov. 15: Two crimes were also reported that day. A male resident student was out for a run along Iroquois Drive when the student reached the area to the north of Coyer Field. He was approached by a suspect who displayed a large black handgun and demanded the victim’s property. The victim turned over his property, before fleeing the scene unharmed. The property was later recovered. Two resident students were traveling southbound on Rees Street near Bradley Street when they were approached from behind by a suspect wearing a black ski mask and black coat. The suspect displayed a large black handgun and stole victims’ cell phones and property. The victims were unharmed after the incident. The suspects still remain unidentified.

According to College Factual, “Buffalo State reported 414 safety-related incidents involving students while on campus in 2018. Nearly 3,000 colleges and universities that reported crime and safety data, over 2,000 of them reported fewer incidents than this. Based on a student body of 10,330 that works out to about 40.08 reports per thousand students.”

I interviewed a couple of students how they viewed their safety on campus regarding all the incidents that have been happening in the last couple of months.

“I feel safe on campus in general. But the incident is happening outside of campus that makes me feel unsafe,” said senior elementary education student Serena Dill.

“I feel safe on campus even despite seeing the emails about the armed robberies and the gun firing into the air,” said Zoe Gonez who is a freshman theater major on campus.

On the other hand, some Buffalo Students do feel that the UPD should take some action in order to keep this campus safe.

“During the daytime I do feel safe on this campus but recently with the things that had been happening, I do not feel safe at all. Especially now, I take late night classes and walking home is a different story when I have to be the one to protect myself and not the UPD,” said Andrew Garcia, who is a communication major at Buffalo State.

The gunshot was fired, the emails were sent, and parents are still worried.

Will this ever come to an end? How safe are we?