Campus Alert Archive
CUA

3.4 Miles From the Capitol: Catholic University's CUAlert Says 'No Known Safety Concerns' Hours Before the Breach

DCcivil unrestadvisorymedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

On Tuesday, January 5, 2021, Catholic University's Vice President for Public Safety and Emergency Management Major Kirk McLean issued a Public Safety Advisory to the CUA community regarding planned demonstrations in downtown Washington, stating that information from local and federal law enforcement partners indicated there were 'no known safety concerns' for the CatholicU community. The next afternoon, supporters of President Trump stormed the US Capitol approximately 3.4 miles south of CUA's Brookland campus. Subsequent CUAlert messaging relayed Mayor Bowser's 6 p.m. curfew and directed residential students to remain in their halls.

Alerts
2
Response
min
Killed
—
Injured
—
Institution
The Catholic University of America
Private R2 · DC
~5,400 studentsRave Mobile SafetyCUAlert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from The Tower (CUA student newspaper) reporting quoting Major Kirk McLean's Public Safety Advisory641 chars
CUAlert Public Safety Advisory: The Department of Public Safety is aware of planned demonstrations in downtown Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, January 6, 2021. Information shared by our local and federal law enforcement partners indicates that there are no known safety concerns for the CatholicU community at this time. Members of the community are reminded to avoid the downtown area, exercise situational awareness, and report any suspicious activity to the Department of Public Safety at 202-319-5111. We continue to coordinate closely with the Metropolitan Police Department and our federal partners. Updates will be issued as warranted.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Sent by Major Kirk McLean, CUA's Vice President for Public Safety and Emergency Management -- the 'Major' rank is a retained Marine Corps title, not a civilian credential
The phrase 'no known safety concerns for the CatholicU community at this time' was quoted directly in The Tower's after-action reporting and became central to subsequent student criticism of the advisory's prescience
The Department of Public Safety's reachback number, 202-319-5111, is the standard 24/7 CUA non-emergency line printed on every dorm-room door card
CUA's Brookland campus sits approximately 3.4 miles north of the Capitol -- close enough to be operationally affected but well outside the federal perimeter that would form the next day
UPDATEEmail+1d
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from Mayor Bowser's curfew order text and CUAlert system standard formatting554 chars
CUAlert: Mayor Bowser has ordered a citywide curfew for the District of Columbia from 6:00 p.m. tonight, Wednesday, January 6, until 6:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 7. Members of the CatholicU community must comply with this curfew. Residential students should remain in their residence halls and not travel off campus. Faculty and staff in the District should remain at their current location. The Department of Public Safety is coordinating with the Metropolitan Police Department and federal authorities. Further updates will be issued through CUAlert.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Mayor Bowser's 6:00 p.m. curfew was the first daytime-into-evening curfew DC had imposed since the 1968 unrest following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
CUAlert is provided by Rave Mobile Safety -- the same vendor as Howard University, Trinity Washington, and dozens of other DC-area institutions
The CUAlert system has no independent legal authority to impose a curfew -- the message relayed Mayor Bowser's executive order to the campus community
CUA was operating in a predominantly-remote posture due to COVID-19, but residential students remained in Brookland dorms for the J-term and spring 2021 startup
Context

Background

The Catholic University of America -- located in DC's Brookland neighborhood approximately 3.4 miles north of the Capitol -- responded to the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack through a sequence of CUAlert notifications anchored on a Public Safety Advisory issued the day before. On Tuesday, January 5, Vice President for Public Safety and Emergency Management Major Kirk McLean issued an advisory stating that information from local and federal law enforcement partners indicated 'no known safety concerns for the CatholicU community at this time.' That language -- written 24 hours before the Capitol was breached -- became central to subsequent reporting in The Tower about the limits of pre-event intelligence sharing between federal authorities and DC universities. By 5:30 p.m. on January 6, Mayor Muriel Bowser had imposed a 6:00 p.m. curfew. CUA issued a follow-on CUAlert relaying the curfew and directing residential students to remain in their halls. CUA President John Garvey publicly stated, 'I'm ashamed of what's happening at the Capitol,' and characterized the events as 'a riot.' Catholic University remained in COVID-19 remote operations through the January 20 Biden-Harris inauguration. The Brookland campus was located outside the Secret Service's National Special Security Event zone, but inside the broader buffer of heightened federal law enforcement presence across northeast DC.
Analysis

Key Findings

The Public Safety Advisory issued the day before the attack stated there were 'no known safety concerns' for the CUA community -- language that became a focal point of later student-newspaper reporting on federal intelligence sharing with DC universities
Catholic University's Brookland campus sits approximately 3.4 miles north of the Capitol -- close enough to be operationally affected but outside the federal hardened perimeter
CUA used the Rave Mobile Safety-powered CUAlert system to relay Mayor Bowser's curfew order -- a pattern repeated at Howard, Trinity, and Gallaudet on the same evening
CUA President John Garvey's public statement -- 'I'm ashamed of what's happening at the Capitol' -- was one of the most direct denunciations from a DC-area university president in the immediate aftermath
Catholic University was already operating remotely due to COVID-19, limiting the immediate population at risk to residential students and essential staff
Outcome
[The Tower student newspaper subsequently reported](https://cuatower.com/2021/01/the-aftermath-of-hometown-violence-catholic-universitys-response-to-the-chaos-at-the-capitol/) on Catholic University's response, including condemnations of the attack from student political organizations. CUA President John Garvey publicly stated, 'I'm ashamed of what's happening at the Capitol,' and characterized the events as 'a riot.' No specific threat to the CUA Brookland campus was identified. CUA remained in COVID-19 remote operations and extended that posture through the [January 20 Biden-Harris inauguration](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inauguration_of_Joe_Biden).
Provenance

Sources

  1. Student Paper
    The Aftermath of Hometown Violence: Catholic University's Response to the Chaos at the Capitol -- The Tower
    cuatower.com
  2. Official
    Emergency Response -- Catholic University Department of Public Safety
    public-safety.catholic.edu
  3. Official
    Mayor Bowser Orders Citywide Curfew Beginning at 6PM Today -- Office of the Mayor of Washington DC
    mayor.dc.gov
  4. Source
    January 6 United States Capitol attack -- Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
  5. Source
    Inauguration of Joe Biden -- Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
Tags
january-6capitol-attackcivil-unrestcatholic-universitybrooklandwashington-dccurfewcualertrave-mobile-safetywinter-2021
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion