Hunter
10/08/22
An ill-advised scheduling of an active shooter drill for Election Day at Kirkwood Community College has been postponed.
The Gazette reports that administrative communications about the previously planned drill they obtained indicated Cedar Rapids police approached Kirkwood last year about conducting an “active shooter full scale event” on campus and chose Jones Hall for the site of the exercise. Officials planned public signage, message to students, and text notifications across the region to avoid any confusion, and to limit the exercise to Jones and the Hotel at Kirkwood Center.
Kirkwood spokesman Justin Hoehn said that public safety officials at the school and with the Cedar Rapids Police picked November 8th because it worked for everyone’s schedules, not because of it being an election day.
When some faculty and staff voiced concern about the timing of the drill and its potential to disrupt voting at its two polling places, officials decided to delay the exercise. The entities will work together to find an alternative date in the future.
