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Summer 2026
NEWSLETTER
Protecting faculty. Protecting students. Protecting schools.
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A Note From The Campaign
A summer of progress for safer campuses
Leading into the summer, The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus advanced campus safety through legislative advocacy, coalition work, student leadership, national convenings, and public education. Across the country, students, educators, law enforcement, parents, and advocates demonstrated that informed and organized action can stop dangerous campus-carry policies.
Thank you for helping keep colleges and universities focused on learning—not firearms.
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Featured Victory
Guns Versus Campuses in New Hampshire … Campuses Won!
The New Hampshire State Senate voted to halt House Bill 1793, the Guns on Campus bill that had cleared the House earlier in the legislative session. Members of the New Hampshire Gun Violence Prevention Coalition—including The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus—mobilized for months through town halls at schools and libraries, public rallies, and testimony at the State Capitol in Concord.
HB 1793 would have prevented public colleges and universities—and private institutions receiving public funds—from restricting firearms on campus. The proposal could have allowed anyone legally possessing a firearm to carry a loaded gun in residence halls, classrooms, childcare centers, athletic venues, contract events, and other campus spaces.
Colleges, universities, and campus security officials warned lawmakers about increased security and insurance costs, the erosion of local decision-making, and the risks of introducing more firearms into complex educational environments.
85% of University of New Hampshire students strongly opposed HB 1793.
“Firearms have no place in educational settings, and we’re so pleased that our senators made the choice to keep our colleges safe.” UNH Hub Coordinators, NH Youth Movement
John McKenna of The Campaign called the result a restoration of proper local governance and proven school-safety protocols. He noted that the victory showed how the combined voices of faculty, students, parents, campus leaders, and advocates can prevail against a “guns everywhere” agenda—and praised the bipartisan cooperation that prevented the bill from advancing.
“Colleges and universities are places of learning, and students should be able to focus on academic growth and personal development instead of worrying about someone with a loaded firearm sitting next to them in class. Zandra Rice Hawkins, GunSense NH and Engage NH
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Legislative Update
State and Federal Action
Coalition note: In Florida and New Hampshire, The Campaign works alongside organizations in the Florida Action Alliance and New Hampshire Gun Violence Prevention Coalition, respectively.
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NH
Victory
HB 1793 was stopped after sustained statewide advocacy.
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LA
Victory
HB 99 was withdrawn, stopping expanded campus carry for people age 18 and older.
Victory
HB 99 was withdrawn, stopping expanded campus carry for people age 18 and older.
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VA
Victory
Multiple gun-reform bills advanced, including an assault-weapons ban and SB 272.
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Florida
HB 757 / SB 896: The Guardian Bill passed, permitting armed guardians on college and university campuses. Participation is voluntary, so The Campaign and Florida Action Alliance partners are now focused on urging college leadership to opt out despite pressure to participate.
HB 321: The Campaign supports evolving legislation to restore and clarify gun-free zones following confusion created by a court ruling on Florida’s open-carry ban.
Illinois
HB 3320, the Responsibility in Firearm Legislation Act: KGOC supports this measure, which would establish a firearms manufacturer licensing program through the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. The bill would connect manufacturer licensing fees to the public-health costs and financial burdens caused by firearm injuries and deaths.
Virginia
Virginia passed multiple gun-reform measures during Governor Abigail Spanberger’s new term, including an assault-weapons ban and a measure making it a crime to leave a firearm visible in a vehicle. That policy could help prevent shootings involving stolen or unsecured firearms, including tragedies such as the shooting at Old Dominion University.
SB 272, sponsored by Senator Creigh Deeds, also advanced. It limits where firearms may be carried in buildings owned or leased by the Commonwealth, including public colleges and universities.
Federal Bills We Support
Office of Gun Violence Prevention Act
Reintroduced by Senator Chris Murphy and Representative Maxwell Frost to establish a permanent gun-violence prevention office within the U.S. Department of Justice.
S. 1531 / H.R. 3115
Assault Weapons Ban, sponsored by Senator Adam Schiff and Representative Lucy McBath.
S. 2514 / H.R. 4821
Gun Violence Prevention Research Act, sponsored by Senator Ed Markey and Representative Marilyn Strickland. KGOC is one of more than 200 organizations supporting the legislation.
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Federal Bills We Oppose
H.R. 7296, SAVE America Act
Would require documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration and photo identification in federal elections.
S. 65 / H.R. 38
Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, which would override stronger state gun laws and impose a weaker national standard across all 50 states.
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5th Annual AAPI Against Gun Violence Convening
Defining the Real Cost of Campus Gun Violence
The Campaign participated and spoke at the June 11–12 AAPI Against Gun Violence Convening in Washington, D.C. KGOC highlighted the need to more fully define and calculate the accumulated cost of gun-violence exposure on campuses—from first-response expenses to evacuation, cancellation, and shutdown costs caused by actual or threatened violence.
50+ college campuses experienced full or partial shutdowns during the past academic year.
The Campaign is helping bring together partners and researchers to address this issue through substantial data collection and analysis. The convening included dynamic forums and notable speakers, including Representative Robin Kelly, Senator Andy Kim, and Fund for a Safer Future’s Rob Wilcox.
Newtown Action Alliance also presented its new Freedom From Gun Violence Messaging Guide, which is featured later in this newsletter.
Brown University student Spencer Yang shared a moving account of surviving a campus shooting. After being shot in the leg, he helped another seriously wounded student remain conscious while they hid behind seats, continuing to talk with him and handing him water until help arrived. The student survived. Spencer, who plays club volleyball and manages Brown’s women’s volleyball team, continues physical therapy before returning to sports. The interview was conducted by Po Murray, and Spencer’s father, James Yang, has spoken about his recovery.
The cost of campus gun violence reaches far beyond the immediate tragedy—and includes the education, opportunity, safety, and stability a campus community loses afterward.
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Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary
U.S. Campuses Were Born Gun-Free
There is a long history of restricting firearms on America’s campuses. Campus firearm prohibitions date back nearly 400 years—more than a century before the Declaration of Independence and the ratification of the Constitution. In this series, The Campaign profiles world-class institutions whose histories demonstrate that gun-free learning environments are deeply rooted in American higher education.
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University of Georgia
Founded: Chartered in 1785 and opened in 1801 in Athens, Georgia.
Historic policy: An early student code stated, “No student shall be allowed to keep any gun, pistol, Dagger, Dirk, sword cane or any other offensive weapon in his room in College or elsewhere.”
Historic distinction: Known as the birthplace of public higher education and the first state-chartered public university founded in America. |
Campus carry today: Under Georgia law, lawful weapons carriers may possess concealed handguns in certain campus areas. Firearms remain prohibited in residence halls, athletic facilities, sporting events, fraternity and sorority houses, faculty and staff offices, childcare centers, and classrooms where high school students are present.
Mascot: Bulldog
Notable alumni: Lyman Hall, UGA founder and signer of the Declaration of Independence; Dr. Alfred Blalock, a pioneer of modern cardiac surgery; The B-52s; Trisha Yearwood; and Kim Basinger.
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Campus Champion
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Patricia Logan-Greene, MSSW, PhD
The University at Buffalo associate professor and associate dean for academic affairs takes a trauma-informed approach to violence, childhood adversity, and systems responding to maltreatment and delinquency.
Her research examines how childhood maltreatment affects aggression, delinquency, physical health, and mental-health outcomes throughout the lifespan. More recently, she has focused on gun-violence prevention and how social workers can use their knowledge and skills to intervene with people at greatest risk of firearm injury.
Logan-Greene is a co-leader of the national Grand Challenge in Social Work to Prevent Gun Violence. |
“Many may feel helpless in preventing kids from being harmed—indirectly or directly—by firearms. Nevertheless, there are still tools available to protect our children, at home and in school.” Patricia Logan-Greene
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Recommended Resources
Research, Messaging, and Storytelling
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This featured article highlights colleges and universities undertaking meaningful work to reduce gun violence, strengthen prevention, and create safer learning environments.
READ THE ARTICLE
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Freedom From Gun Violence
The Campaign is proud to co-sponsor this new messaging guide led by Newtown Action Alliance with special advisor ASO Communications. The evolving toolkit is designed to reframe the gun-violence debate and help advocates communicate solutions that can build broad public support. |
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Moving Pictures: Ripple Effect
When gun violence occurs, attention often centers on the immediate tragedy—the people killed, families left behind, and trauma that spreads outward. Less visible is the future erased in an instant: graduations, first homes, families, communities, and legacies that never have the chance to exist.
Ripple Effect, the first PSA in a four-part series from March for Our Lives and Courier Newsroom, centers that absence.
WATCH RIPPLE EFFECT
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Save the Date
DRAMATIC CHANGE
October 7, 2026
People’s Theatre, New York City
The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus requests your engagement in a very special 2026 benefit at the grand opening of the beautiful new People’s Theatre.
A special performance of GUAC, performed by Parkland parent and creative artist and activist Manuel Oliver, will highlight the evening.
More to come!
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