Rodin unveils new campus safety program

Initiatives could cost millions In an open letter printed in today's Almanac, University President Judith Rodin outlines core components of a master security plan designed to improve safety both on and off campus. However, the plan itself is still in a draft form and will not be released until after a group of safety experts visits the University next month and makes additional recommendations. Rodin's letter lists several "significant new steps toward our goal of a safer Penn," including the creation of a series of Community Walks throughout campus, the positioning of new security and information kiosks at strategic points on and off campus and the development of uniform safety standards for campus buildings and security personnel. Additionally, the Division of Public Safety will double its bicycle patrols -- putting 10 more officers on bikes. Three of these bikes will be purchased with funds allocated by the Undergraduate Assembly. Finally, an analysis of building-use patterns will probably lead to changes in hours of operation and security measures taken at certain campus locations. Rodin said she is pleased to be able to announce the new initiatives -- some of which will be implemented starting this week. She estimated that the cost of the proposed safety programs will be several million dollars. Work on the Community Walks is slated to begin as soon as possible, Rodin said. New signs will be installed to mark key campus arteries, tentatively identified as Locust Street from 33rd to 43rd streets, 36th Street from Chestnut Street to the Nursing Education Building and Walnut, Spruce and Pine streets between 39th and 43rd streets. Along these routes, lighting will be enhanced, more of blue light phones will be added and security patrols will be beefed up, Rodin added. The Community Walks will be dotted with security kiosks, designating the ends of campus, according to University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich. "We anticipate that we'll be putting in as many as five," he said, adding that the kiosks will increase safety because they will be visible, well-lit structures built of glass "with a cone kind of roof" -- similar to an extra set of "eyes and ears." The kiosks will be staffed by contract guards who will be in radio and telephone contact with Public Safety. These guards will probably be provided by Allied Security, the same company that currently staffs entrances to dormitories. The kiosks will also serve a dual purpose as "ambassadors for the University," Kuprevich said, since each structure will have an exterior blue light phone and will provide maps and other campus information for visitors. The increased bicycle patrols will be instituted because studies have shown that officers on bikes are community-friendly and are able to provide an immediate feeling of security, Rodin said. In the open letter, Rodin also discusses the dramatic increase in the number of police officers on campus since 1989 and the creation of PennWatch -- a student-run organization devoted to increasing pedestrian traffic in West Philadelphia. "We can never make the University secure by building a wall around its perimeter," she states. "Sealing Penn off, even if possible, would deprive it of the urban interaction that has historically produced much of its intellectual vigor and character." She adds that increased crime prevention and safety education efforts by students, faculty, staff and community members and economic development proposals targeted at the West Philadelphia area will improve security in University City as well. Among the experts set to advise Rodin and Kuprevich next month are former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Tucker and U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge of Philadelphia Ernie Kun. The head of security for Johns Hopkins University and a special agent employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation will also be on campus to offer suggestions, Rodin said. She cited connections she has made during her service on President Clinton's White House safety panel this fall as valuable in assembling the team.

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