In January 2024, Bethel University in McKenzie, Tennessee, was awarded a Tennessee Higher Education Safety Grant of approximately $300,000. The grant program, approved by the state legislature in the fall of 2023, allows Tennessee colleges and universities to invest in various safety and security improvements. Upgrades will be made to the security camera systems across Bethel’s campus, including the Vera Low Student Center and Department of Nursing. The electronic access control systems in dormitories will be upgraded as will parking lot and building security lights. Additional parking light poles are expected to be installed on Bethel Court in front of the Dickey Fine Arts Center as well as at the Dr. Deborah Thompson Tennis Complex. Tentatively, light upgrades will be finished by the first of August 2024.




