Penn’s Division of Public Safety last week topped Security Magazine’s “Security 500” list for the third year running, a commendable achievement by any measure.
It goes without saying that DPS should be proud of this recognition, and DPS certainly works hard daily to earn and keep this title. Penn employs one of the largest private security forces in the country and puts both money and effort into a variety of efforts across campus, from better lighting to text-message alerts, to keep students, faculty and staff safe on our urban campus.
The timing of the recognition — when the Penn campus’s awareness of crime is heightened due to three recent sexual assaults — should serve as a reminder to DPS that around-the-clock vigilance is still required. No matter the number of accolades, safety and security must continue to be taken seriously. However, it should also remind students that, while we have a security force recognized as one of the most elite in the nation, crime can and all too often does happen on campus, and that we must do as much as possible to stop crime. This ranges from making sure to lock our laptops in library carrels and calling a walking escort when you’re heading home alone late on a Friday night. Know what you can do, too.
