Pres. pledges $5M to step up security

University President Amy Gutmann unveiled a plan yesterday to increase the safety of Penn students on and around campus.

In a statement released last night, Gutmann pledged $5 million toward increasing the number of uniformed and plainclothes officers patrolling the streets and to invest in security technology. This will raise the budget of the Division of Public Safety from $23 million to $28 million, an increase of almost 22 percent.

The number of Penn Police officers is to be increased by 20 percent and the number of security guards is to be increased by 50 percent. Between $2 million and $3 million are to be invested in lighting, security cameras and emergency blue-light phones. Until more Penn Police can be hired, officials will ask officers to work 12-hour shifts, up from eight hours.

"This year has definitely been a challenge," Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said. She added, "We have to sort of shock the environment by doing a lot and by doing it now."

Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli said that action taken now will make the campus safer.

"This seems to be the time to saturate the area" with police, Carnaroli said.

He added that these initiatives are not in response to the recent acts of violence suffered by Penn students.

"We've received a number of letters from parents expressing concern," Carnaroli said. "This is not in response to that. But their concerns are a factor."

The plan calls for more guards to be stationed at specific areas of campus, similar to the consistent presence of guards at 40th and Pine streets last semester.

Additional guards are also to be placed along Market Street at 40th and 34th streets, Rush said, and in other areas that she declined to specify.

The initiative is set to begin immediately, with some new guards being deployed right away and the rest being phased in.

"This is not going to take a year to put into effect, but there are steps that need to be taken," Carnaroli said. Such steps include hiring, training and equipping officers and guards.

Carnaroli said that the $5 million will come from moving around existing funds and possibly at the expense of future projects.

"We have to make this a priority and defer other requests for the time being," Carnaroli said.

Rush and Carnaroli praised members of the Penn community for their use of safety escort services and called on students to continue taking advantage of them.

"Just the fact that [students] are smart enough to pick up the phone and say, 'Hey, come get me' just helps us tremendously," Carnaroli said.

According to Rush, students called for a walking escort 1,331 times in December, compared to 386 in the same month in 2004.

Still, Rush acknowledges that the recent citywide spike in violent crime has taken a toll on the Penn community.

"This is a bad year; it's a tough year," Rush said, adding that this plan is intended to give the University what it needs to "fight back stronger than ever."

Rethinking security - University pledges 22 percent increase in Division of Public Safety budget - Penn Police numbers to be increased 20 percent; 50 percent more security guards to be added - Officials say initiative not a direct result of recent shootings

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