CHAPEL HILL – In the wake of the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, the UNC campus and community are coming together with a goal to reduce violence.

“Our schools are pretty safe places but we have a steady flow of these mass-casualty events,” said UNC Professor Stephen Marshall.

Marshall is the director of the Injury Prevention Research Center at UNC.

He wants the community to check-out the forum that’s being held on Wednesday at the Tate-Turner Kuralt Auditorium on UNC’s campus at noon. It’s a discussion that’s open to the public.

“We want to bring all of those people together to have a forum or public conversation on how we can keep our schools safe,” Marshall explains. “It’s also about keeping society safe in respect to how we resolve our conflicts with one another.”

Panelists include UNC Professors, leaders from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools, and the executive director of SAVE or Students Against Violence Everywhere.

“People should come prepared to discuss and engage but they should also come prepared to listen,” Marshall said.

The UNC School of Social work is hosting the event. You can also attend the reception at 11:30 a.m., and a portion of the discussion will be open-mic to the public.

Marshall says the best parking option is the Dogwood visitors deck near the UNC Hospitals, which is about a ten-minute walk from the event.