DPS meeting draws low turnout

The Department of Public Safety responded to 325 South Campus noise complaint calls this year, but only 14 reports were filed-12 of them were for intoxication.

For students with concerns about DPS presence on South Campus, an open-forum discussion was held Wednesday night at the Goldstein Student Center to talk about living on South Campus and the role of DPS in serving residents.

Ten to 15 students attended the forum, and there were eight members from the Department of Public Safety. Several students also joined in the discussion when they saw it was taking place.

Members from both the DPS Student Advisory Committee and DPS expressed their frustration that so few students attended the event.

"It's a shame that more students aren't here," said Officer C.J. McCurty, manager of South Campus Crime Prevention. "More students need to get involved."

While the student turnout was small, it didn't take away from the topics at hand. The leadoff issue was the negative stereotypes and perceptions students may have about DPS. If these stereotypes exist, then "how quickly is someone going to go and call DPS (when there is a problem)?" asked Nneka Obiekwe, a sophomore in the College of Human Ecology and a member of the DPS Student Advisory Committee.

Many students on campus are wary of DPS because they are afraid they are going to get written up. This is a perception that needs to be dispelled, Obiekwe said. She said students shouldn't be afraid of the people who are there to protect them.

People have the perception that "things on South Campus are dealt with disproportionately," said McCurty.

"Perception isn't always reality," said Mike Rathbun, assistant director and assistant chief of community policing.

Out of 325 calls that DPS responded to, 14 reports were filed. On main campus, 72 of the 89 noise complaints resulted in reports being filed.

"DPS is not looking for parties to bust when we are patrolling campus," said Cpl. Kwamena Morris, the midnight shift supervisor. She stressed that when DPS is patrolling, they are looking to find suspicious people who are out to harm and victimize students.

"Nine out of 10 parties are busted because of a call from a neighbor, not us initiating," she said.

Another issue discussed is the matter of local Syracuse residents causing problems at South Campus parties and then leaving. South Campus is not a gated community so if there is an issue students need to call DPS and let them know what is going on, McCurty said.

Both the advisory committee and DPS agreed that more information needs to be sent out to students informing them of the issues and to answer any concerns that they may have. Referring to the statistics showing that very few students had been actually written up, Obiekwe said, "the numbers speak for themselves, but we are kids, and we perceive things as we perceive them."

DPS said it is doing its best to try to reach out to students.

"Crime Prevention was formed as a way to meet people," said Morris. "We are catering to students more than they think we are."

The big question for DPS is how to best get students to pay attention. DPS has tried setting up tables, putting up bulletin boards and even utilizing Facebook, but they are always open to suggestions, McCurty said.

"We hope to hear from more students," he added. "Maybe it won't change our policies, but it would be good to hear where the students are coming from."

Students also called into question the protocols for visiting and gaining access to South Campus. Before, if students wanted to enter South Campus, they had to provide their names, show a college ID and have an SU student sign them in. This is no longer the case.

"Students thought it was too strict and complained about how strict it was," Morris said.

Tim Wilke, a freshman environmental studies major and a member of the Student Association, brought up several topics that were sources of confusion for students. He mentioned some students are unwilling to call DPS because they are afraid DPS will bust the entire party and not just remove the individual who is causing trouble.

"If there is no brawl and no obvious signs of underage drinking and intoxication, we will only (remove the individual)," McCurty said.

Another issue of importance was the Shuttle U Home service DPS provides. There was confusion among students on whether or not the service extended to main campus and South Campus students. McCurty said at this time, the Shuttle U Home service is only for off-campus residents, but it will service students who live on campus during the gap when the buses are not running.

While this event may not have been as well-attended as expected, more discussions and forums are possible in the future.

"We understand that this is coming at the end of the semester, and kids have papers and projects," Rathbun said. "Director Callisto (Chief of DPS) is committed to establishing inroads with students and developing collaboration them and the university community."

myjiang@syr.edu