Art Academy of Cincinnati urges immediate funding after daytime shooting near dorms

Sarah Stoler, academic dean at the Art Academy of Cincinnati, told Cincinnati City Council on Sept. 10 that a violent altercation involving guns broke out in front of the school on Sept. 8, endangering students and prompting renewed calls for emergency city support. “Our dorms, home to more than 80 students, most living away from home for the first time, are just steps away from where this occurred,” Stoler said, calling for camera and lighting upgrades, access-control improvements, more contracted security guards, student-ambassador safety programs and a proposed pedestrian-only street closure plan.

Why it matters: The Art Academy occupies a central place in Over-the-Rhine (OTR) as a cultural and economic anchor, speakers said, and campus safety incidents have immediate effects on students’ well-being and the neighborhood’s stability. The academy asked council to consider an emergency ordinance to allocate funds from the city’s unappropriated…