Diversity training for Penn Police officers and a monthly review of all arrests of minorities will be part of a new program to combat the perception of police misconduct, according to a report released yesterday.
The Ad Hoc Committee on Safety in a Diverse Environment -- charged with addressing the relationship between the Department of Public Safety and black males on campus -- released its final report, marking the culmination of over two months of debate about race relations and the Penn Police.
The document outlines policy recommendations from the committee's 32 members -- including faculty, administrators and students -- for the DPS.
The committee was formed after College sophomore Warith Deen Madyun was mistakenly apprehended by Penn Police last November. Madyun was part of a group of four males who fit the description of individuals sought in a cell phone theft. They were released when the confusion was cleared up.
Madyun believes some good could come from the committee's recommendations.
"This is a step in the right direction," he said in an e-mail interview. "If what happened to me happens to someone else, then we know that the weeks of committee meetings was a waste of time."
Included in the report was an assessment of the policies adopted by the DPS after the report of last spring's Ad Hoc Committee on Racial Profiling. That committee was formed after the arrest of Spruce College House Associate Faculty Master Rui DaSilva.
Changes to DPS policy include a monthly review of all police stops by race and gender and a thoroughly publicized program for issuing complaints against officers.
"I think we're going to see a lot more communication," said Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush, who authored that section of the report. "It's important to have a broad dialogue with the student body in general."
Rush added that the DPS has hired representatives from consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton to help develop long-term diversity training programs for all officers.
"Cultural competency is ... an ongoing learning issue," Rush said. "You don't just give one program and expect that that's all you ever have to do. It's a constantly changing field."
Interim Provost Peter Conn noted that the DPS will work with college house administrators to address police misconduct and racial profiling, although the committee did not design a specific program.
"We don't like coercion," said Conn, noting that future programs would be more effective if students participated voluntarily. "It may be that this program will require imagination."
Conn added that he hoped the report would create long-term discussion about racial issues.
The 10-page report will be presented to Gutmann this week. Both Conn and Gutmann will sign a final version, which will then be available to the public.
The Office of the Provost will be accountable for making sure that the report's recommendations go into effect.
"We don't use the difficulty [of this issue] as an excuse for not embracing the challenge," Conn said. The committee sought "a balance between keeping our community safe ... and ensuring that persons who encounter the police are treated with respect and professionalism."
