MCC to get security cameras

CRYSTAL LAKE — McHenry County College soon will get a little safer.

Officials plan to install 21 security cameras in the parking lots as well as building entryways using a nearly $50,000 federal grant. The video then would be stored for at least seven days.

The money is part of a $350,000 federal earmark secured by U.S. Rep. Don Manzullo, R-Egan, for campus safety for the colleges in his district. The money was secured in April, shortly after a Feb. 14 shooting at Northern Illinois University left six students dead, including the shooter.

Courtney Brust, who will be a second-semester MCC freshman in January, said she’s glad the school will install the cameras.

“When I first arrived, I noticed that there were no security cameras, and ... it just kind of worried me,” she said. “With all the school shootings, I get paranoid ...  [cameras] make you just feel safer whether something is going to happen or not.”

The cameras will be installed by Secure Integrations of Des Plaines. No additional personnel will be hired to monitor them, said Christina Haggerty, MCC spokeswoman.

She added that the measure is one of a number of things the campus is doing to create a safer environment.

Other efforts include: implementing a new emergency notification system that sends text messages and voice mails to employees and students when there’s a school closing or emergency; collaboration with the Crystal Lake Police department and a revised emergency communications plan.