Student infuriated by absent security guards

Waiting alone -- and unarmed -- for Escort Service in the wee hours of the night outside the High Rises has made College sophomore Chris Metcalfe nervous about his safety. According to Metcalfe, the student security guards assigned to watch over the "Loop" transit stop at High Rise South are often absent from their posts when Metcalfe returns at 2:45 a.m. from his night shift job at the Philadelphia International Airport. And because the High Rises are closed for the summer, Metcalfe cannot wait for Escort in the shelter of the High Rise South lobby. "The school said they would provide the service," he said. "[But] the service isn't there and no one's willing to take responsibility for it." Metcalfe said he complained to an array of University officials -- including Director of Victim Support Rush, Executive Vice President Janet Hale and Division of Public Safety Commissioner John Kuprevich -- who each blamed the problem on other departments. "It was such an incredible runaround -- all of these people were stooges," he said. "To deal with so many defensive people makes me sad." Rush -- whose department oversees the student security guards at the Escort transit stops -- said she is aware of Metcalfe's problem. "At High Rise South, there seemed to be a problem during the past couple of weeks," she said. "Apparently some student workers left early." However, Rush said that on one occasion when Metcalfe complained, the student security guard on duty -- while away from her usual position at a desk inside High Rise South -- was actually standing outside the building, talking to a friend. "It was an oversight that time," she said. "Maybe he was expecting a male student [guard]." Rush added that Metcalfe made the "only complaint I've had -- although it may have happened in the past." But Wharton sophomore Kevin Spence, a security guard who has occasionally guarded High Rise South, said that he and other student guards often leave their posts before 2:45 a.m. "Come 2:45 we're in a big rush to get out," Spence said. "This is something you can do and blow off and make a lot of money -- it's easy money." Spence added that he knew student security guards leaving work early was a "big problem" since he began working for the Department of Public Safety earlier this year. Director of Transportation Ron Ward said that although he understands Metcalf's "predicament and frustration," he thinks there might have been a misunderstanding on at least one occasion. "The security person saw him leave [when] he was coming out of the bathroom," Ward said. "But [Metcalfe said he] didn't see any security at the High Rises." Rush said this week that she acknowledges that the problem lies within Victim Support and added that she is in the process of "re-vamping the system." In order to give students "an extra sense of security," student security guards and Walking Escort workers will begin wearing uniforms consisting of baseball caps and vests marked "Campus Security Cadet." Rush also said she will be making sporadic check-ups on the student-guards, to insure that they are not leaving their posts early. Spence said Rush's actions have been effective. "She's making a big effort," he said. "These spot checks are making sure students are doing their jobs."