NC A&T introduced ways to increase security and safety on campus for students and faculty; including an alert system, emergency app and posts throughout campus, and well-trained university police and other technology for surveillance.
The safety of students is secured on campus, but off-campus activity is monitored less by NC A&T, while college students are 14 times more likely to be victims of violent crimes off-campus, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Universities to Look At
Solutions From The Community
The Greensboro Police Department currently holds multiple programs led by the community engagement including a partnership with A&T, to provide safety for students.
College Daze, a local entertainment group, has started to provide students transportation to events, rather than buying a ticket they pay money for gas.
picture is from College Daze instagram account regarding a off-campus party they hosted.
What To Do Next
21CP Solutions analyzes safety measures of universities extended off campus and provides plans/reports, as well as efforts to build trust between the police and the students/community.
According to 21 CP Solutions, creating safe zones dedicated to areas touching or interacting with the campus, and provide transportation from popular college party stops.
It also suggests to increase communications between the University, UPD, local police, and local entertainment groups
“I wish we could talk to more of the promoters and get them on our side like we do the off-campus properties,” Poole said.
21CP Solutions analyzes safety measures of universities extended off campus and provides plans, as well as efforts to build trust between the police and the students/community.
picture is from 21CP Solutions wesbite.
Limitations
Personnel: more officers would need to be hired to have enough to be available on and off campus.
“If we take all our resources off campus, there’s nobody on campus.It’s a numbers game.” - Nicholas Poole, Police Officer II NC A&T
Costs: Hiring officers and bus drivers, then operating the buses all cost money. The University has to decide how much to allocate to students' safety.
Permissions is another issue: to make solutions, the responsibility needs to be placed before anything can be fixed.
“To be real, with stuff outside of school, I don’t think they can do nothing about it, really,” said freshman Kendall Avent, a student hit by a car at a college party off campus.. "Cause that’s like a public thing."
picture is from Fox 8 report of car accident at a party hosted by Entertainment group College Daze
Nyla Anderson is a NC A&T freshman multimedia journalism major from Cincinnati, Ohio.