The Department of Education opened an investigation Monday into Brown University’s compliance with federal campus-security law, a probe spurred by the recent mass shooting at an academic building that left two students dead.
The department said its Office of Federal Student Aid will review whether the university violated the Higher Education Act’s Section 485(f), known as the Jeanne Clery Campus Safety Act, requiring schools that receive federal financial student aid to meet certain safety benchmarks.
“After two students were horrifically murdered at Brown University when a shooter opened fire in a campus building, the Department is initiating a review of Brown to determine if it has upheld its obligation under the law to vigilantly maintain campus security,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said.
During the police investigation into the Dec. 13 shooting on the Rhode Island campus, questions were raised about the effectiveness of Brown’s surveillance system, which reportedly failed to capture useful images of the gunman or his escape route despite having 1,200 cameras.
There were also reports of complaints from students and staff about delays with the university’s emergency notification system, the department said.
“If true, these shortcomings constitute serious breaches of Brown’s responsibilities under federal law,” said the department in a statement.
The university said Monday that it will move to enhance security and commission an external “After-Action Review” as part of a comprehensive safety-and-security assessment following the shooting.
In addition, Vice President for Public Safety and Emergency Management Rodney Chatman has been placed on administrative leave effective immediately.
He was replaced on an interim basis by former Providence Police Chief Hugh Clements, reporting directly to Brown President Christina Paxson.
“Clements will report directly to Paxson during his interim leadership, underscoring Brown’s commitment to clear accountability, leadership continuity and a sustained focus on campus safety at a time when safety is a critical part of healing and recovery for its community,” said the university in a statement.
A gunman identified as 48-year-old Claudio Neves Valente, a Portuguese national and former Ph.D. student at Brown, shot and killed two students and injured nine at the Barus and Holly engineering building.
He was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound Dec. 18 in a New Hampshire storage facility.
“Students deserve to feel safe at school, and every university across this nation must protect their students and be equipped with adequate resources to aid law enforcement,” Ms. McMahon said. “The Trump Administration will fight to ensure that recipients of federal funding are vigorously protecting students’ safety and following security procedures as required under federal law.”
The FAFSA office asked Brown to produce a series of documents by Jan. 30, including its annual security reports under the Clery Act; “audit trails” showing campus crime and arrests; dispatch and crime logs; and copies of policies on emergency notifications and evacuations.
Those criticizing the university’s surveillance system included President Trump.
“Why did Brown University have so few Security Cameras?” he said in a post last week on Truth Social. “There can be no excuse for that. In the modern age, it just doesn’t get worse!!!”
The two Brown students killed were Ella Cook, a 19-year-old sophomore from Mountain Brook, Alabama, who was vice president of the Republican Club; and 18-year-old freshman Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, a dual citizen from Uzbekistan who graduated from Midlothian High School in Virginia.
“Both were brilliant and beloved — as members of our campus community, but even more by their friends and families. Our hearts continue to be with them in their profound sorrow,” said Brown President Christina Paxson in a Friday tribute.
