N.C. State Campus Police collaborated with University Housing to conduct a drill simulating what would happen in the event that a shooter opened fire on students living in on-campus housing.

The drill took an hour and a half to complete and featured about 200 human actors, according to Katina Blue, Director of Disaster Recovery for the Division of Environmental Health and Public Safety. This drill was the first in University history that used students as actors, Blue said.

Several student housing employees including resident advisors and resident directors from Central Campus volunteered to participate in the drill, which took place in and around Bowen and Tucker halls. Students chose how involved they wanted to be in the drill by selecting one of three levels of participation, Blue said. 

Students acted as shooters, victims or bystanders depending on which level they chose. Blue said that about 70 students participated in the drill.

“The more students get involved, the more they will see what N.C. State is doing to keep them safe in dangerous situations,” Blue said.

Capt. Ian Kendrick of Campus Police helped plan the drill and said there is no substitute for a live training scenario to help prepare police officers for such a disaster.

“It gets the adrenaline pumping and really shows how people work under pressure and developing situations,” Kendrick said.

According to Kendrick, this was the first time an active shooter drill has been conducted in dorms at N.C. State.

Although the drill took place less than one month after the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn., University officials had been planning the training event since early last semester.

“We are doing this not to be insensitive, but to prepare to handle an event like the shooting in Connecticut as best we can,” Kendrick said.