New campus safety opportunities for students

Here at the University of Hartford, student safety and maintaining a safe environment on campus is a crucial aspect of what makes our school great. Public safety never fails to provide protection, security, and PROVIDING that safe environment, allowing the students to feel comfortable living here. However, lately there have been a series of problems regarding safety these past two weeks or so. Theft, car jackings, robberies, problem after problem and it’s led to people being concerned and taking further measures to ensure that their property is safe and for the sake of their well-beings. Sure, Public Safety can continue to send out awareness texts and emails, they can continue to advise precautions to help make the students feel safer, but at the end of the day: there is only so much they can do…up until now.

The latest news coming from Public Safety to help make the campus even safer is they are now inviting students to get involved in helping keep things in check. Public Safety has developed plans to start a “Public Safety Student Advisory Committee.”  Through applications submitted to the Department of Public Safety, officers are able to assess those of whom are best fit to help the community maintain a safe atmosphere. The hope is that with additional input provided by students who are obviously closer, and more connected to student life, that crime will be diminished and will continue to diminish over the course of time.

Personally, I believe it is a good idea considering it surely comes as no surprise that students are continuously able to deceive Public Safety officers by ditching “evidence”, or hiding things just close enough before officers can see what they have. With students added to the force, it can be assumed that since they know the “tactics” of their peers, that if there is an injustice committed that it will not go unnoticed. This course of action also goes beyond students just joining the Public Safety officers. The department is now trying to be more responsive to concerns submitted by average students who just happen to witness or hear about something going wrong on campus. What this means is that students can now basically email the department with complaints, concerns, anything that they are worried about which will then be looked at by a committee of students AND officers and will hopefully be taken care of at a faster rate given the increase in people helping out.

Considering the committee is open to all applicants, there is absolutely no harm in applying and everyone is encouraged to send in a complaint or concern when one comes up, no matter how drastic or minor the issue may seem. Speaking up is important, especially when it comes to the safety of the community. Naturally, everyone prefers to live in a place where they feel safe. As a community, it is important that we all lend a helping hand in any way we can to help ensure the comfort, happiness, and sense of security for everyone who lives here. By the Department of Public Safety opening its doors to more help in order to make our home even safer, students and faculty will feel even better than they already do about residing and working at this incredible institution.

For an amazing school, we should be able to take pride in every single aspect that comes along with it, big or small. Safety is an important factor of every community, so why not take massive pride in the fact that our safety department is so keen on keeping everyone happy that they have become even more inclusive in student life. If you are interested in applying for the Public Safety Student Advisory Committee, you can find more information and the applications in UNotes. Take a part in helping our school be a little safer day by day, and in return you can make yourself feel more at home.

*Editor’s note: This story was written based off information available in UNotes without contacting Public Safety.

IMAGE COURTESY OF HARTFORD.EDU