Spring Break
A word from the ECU police department
Elise Phillips, Assistant Pulse Editor
Issue date: 9/16/08 Section: News
|
In light of tragedies that have happened around the nation, what is the ECU police department doing to keep students safe?
The ECU police department has a proactive approach to dealing with safety for the campus community. We provide several safety programs for faculty, staff and students. We currently have introduced a video to go along with our At-Work Place Violence presentation. This video, called "Shots Fired," provides tips on what to do if a shooter were to enter your workplace. At this time, this program is provided to the faculty and staff, but because of all of the positive feedback, we are in the process of providing a similar video for students.
Our officers are sent to training annually to stay up-to-date on rapid deployment techniques as well as several others. We work closely with [the] Greenville Police Department and Pitt County sheriff's office and in the event of a serious crisis on campus, we would have their assistance.
What other mechanisms besides police patrol units are you using to keep students safe?
Several people are not aware of our student patrol unit. If you leave campus before 7 p.m., this is why. Our student patrol unit consists of students that operate as an extra set of eyes and presence for the police department. The student patrol unit secures the classroom buildings, patrols campus, patrols the exterior of the residence halls and provides safety escorts. Sometimes they are confused with SafeRide. SafeRide, at one time, did fall under the police department but now resides under Transit. We still work together, but our student patrol officers can only provide an escort on campus and SafeRide goes off-campus. A full student patrol unit is 13 [officers], with some student officers assigned to athletics, residence halls and campus. The student patrol hours are 7 p.m. to 12 a.m. Sunday through Saturday. Student officers working in residence halls work Sunday through Wednesday 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., [and] Thursday to Saturday 9 p.m. to 3 a.m.
How many police officers are on staff at the ECU PD?
At this time there are 55 sworn officers not counting our reserve officers. We have 62 positions available and hope to fill the positions soon.
Do you interact with students often? If so, what are the things they talk about the most?
Yes, I do. It is in a different setting than when I was on patrol. After being promoted, my interactions are more with groups, for example, student orientation. When I was on patrol, I would interact in passing or if someone approached me. Now, I have an audience, many times a very large audience, waiting to hear me speak about safety. Questions from students can range from drinking ticket questions to concerns about lighting.
What would you say accounts for most of the crime on campus and why?
The number one crime on ECU's campus is larceny. Preventing larcenies is an essential part of crime prevention presentations. Many of the larcenies that take place are from individuals simply not securing their property. Offices are left unlocked, purses and wallets are left on desks, laptops left unattended [and] the list goes on. Bicycles account for many of our recent larceny reports. Many students are not utilizing locks and they are not registering their bicycles. This can easily be done at no cost at Parking and Traffic or the police department; every bicycle on campus is supposed to be registered.
Do you think that ECU's campus is a safe one?
I believe that ECU's campus is very safe. As a university, we just need to work together to make sure it stays that way. It is a collaborative effort between staff, faculty and students with shared responsibility in providing a safe environment.
hat can students do to keep themselves safe?
Walk in groups, have a designated driver, stay on well-lit paths and listen to your instincts. If something doesn't seem right, it probably isn't. If you see something that looks suspicious, REPORT IT--we cannot assume someone else will do it.
Be the first to comment on this story