SMU’s Turning Point USA chapter, a conservative group, wants the school administration to overturn its concealed carry ban because it believes people carrying firearms at SMU will create a safer campus against active shooter threats.

Texas Senate Bill 11, which went into effect in 2016, allows individuals with concealed carry permits to bring their weapons on college campuses. Public schools have no choice but to follow the bill, while private universities can opt out.

In addition to SMU, Baylor University, Texas Christian University, Rice University, St. Edward’s University, University of the Incarnate Word, Austin College and others, also prohibit firearms on campus.

President Turner sent a letter in 2015 to the SMU campus community explaining his decision to opt out of Texas Senate Bill 11. He wrote SMU had been a weapons-free campus since at least 1994, and based on campus-wide feedback, students, faculty and staff were “overwhelmingly in favor of SMU remaining weapons free.” Turner also discussed the policy with the board of trustees, legal affairs, student affairs, and campus police, which Turner said helped his decision.

Turning Point emailed President Turner in September, expressing its interest in meeting about its concerns. President Turner has yet to respond.

Preston Patten, president of SMU’s Turning Point chapter, believes anyone with a concealed carry permit who is over 21 should be allowed on SMU’s campus.

“We need concealed carry on campus to make students’ lives safer, period,” Patten said. “The number one goal of this movement and this initiative is student’s lives. That’s the one thing we care about.”

Turning Point USA is operated exclusively for educational and charitable purposes per Section 501(c)(3). It aims to help students connect with traditional American values, fulfill their civic duties, and be the best Americans they can be while staying disconnected from any political party.

“Our goal is to engage with the campus community to restore traditional American values like patriotism, liberty, and fiscal responsibility,” Patton said.

As Turner prepares to step down as the university’s 10th President at the end of the 2024-2025 academic year, SMU’s Turning Point chapter hopes to change the campus carry policy before Turner transitions to president emeritus.

“We hope that we can work with President Turner, the Board of Trustees, and any leadership at the institutional level to change this policy effective now,” Patten said.

Although it has been eight years since SMU opted out of campus carry, students like SMU junior George Pittman believe remaining weapons-free is the best thing for the campus.

“With the wake of everything that’s happened with recent shootings and how gun reform is currently going through a change, I think until we can get a better system in place for going through the steps of the process to determine who can own a firearm legally, SMU should stay with the no concealed carry on campus,” Pittman said.

Students in favor of concealed carry on campus believe not only in their Second Amendment right but that the response time from an individual would be drastically faster than campus police and would ultimately save many more lives rather than waiting for law enforcement to intervene.

“SMU police can get here in two to three minutes, but in two to three minutes, a lot can happen,” said Cole Collins, a senior at SMU. “It is going to take me one to two seconds to draw a weapon and deter a school shooting. We can save 10 to 20 lives in two to three minutes.”

SMU’s policy toward active shooters is, “avoid, deny, defend,” a policy many universities have adopted. On Jan. 3, 2023, SMU released a video on its website called, “Preparing for an Active Threat.” A video clip shows an active shooter attacking the school, and while police are responding, they give helpful steps on how to avoid and survive such threats. The Daily Campus reached out to SMU Police for this story but have not yet received a response.

Student Body President Michael Castle believes the campus police are more than capable of keeping the campus safe. He also thinks SMU does not need concealed carry permits to make the campus safer.

“I have great confidence in our on-campus police department,” Castle said. “Chief [Jim] Walters and the rest of SMU PD are an incredibly important part of campus safety and a major reason why I personally feel safe here.”

Longtime SMU Political Science Professor Cal Jilson said the conservative groups’ plan to persuade school officials will likely not go anywhere due to the students’ and professors’ trust in the schools’ policies. Jilson also agrees with SMU’s decision to opt out of campus carry.

“Private persons and organizations, including private universities, have a right to decide whether carrying without a permit on their campus or their property will be permitted,” Jilson said. “SMU has decided that the answer is no.”