Students may overlook Penn's walking escorts

Despite the fluorescent ensembles and overwhelming presence on campus of AlliedBarton security guards, some members of the Penn community still overlook the free opportunity to be safely escorted to their destinations.

College freshman Hillary Barlowe, who once declined to be escorted by an officer while walking home in her black belt from Tae Kwon Do, said that if she is headed past 40th Street, she might consider accepting a future offer.

Penn’s AlliedBarton district manager Steve Walsh celebrated the partnership between Penn’s Walking Escort Services and the University City District Ambassador Program, which would make Barlowe’s future request possible. While Penn Patrol cruises the perimeter bounded by Market Street, Baltimore Avenue, and 30th and 43rd streets, if a student wanted to go beyond that boundary, in a “seamless handoff” they would be transferred to the custody of a Safety Ambassador, said Walsh. These safety ambassadors patrol the periphery of Penn’s campus from 30th to 50th streets and from Spring Garden Street to Woodland Avenue.

However, directory of Security Services Cherie Heller stressed that there is “no minimum length requirement” for an escorted trip and that many community members utilize the service within campus bounds.

College freshman Becca James said that she was glad to be able to call Penn Walk at 2:30 a.m. from Van Pelt Library, as it made her “feel more comfortable” not to walk home alone at that hour. She was pleased with her experience and found her escort to be “very friendly,” and has used the service multiple times since.

Within its perimeter, Penn Patrol now deploys over 500 unarmed AlliedBarton officers to complement Penn Police, said Heller.

She explained that the improved organization and increased presence of Penn’s security force came around 1996, coinciding with the stabbing of Penn research associate Vladimir Sled and the appointment of Maureen Rush as Division of Public Safety’s new Vice President. Walsh stressed that Penn’s security operations are customized to this campus, “always evolving,” and that “as circumstances change on campus, the Penn Patrol officers’ training reflects this.”

In homage to Penn, and because AlliedBarton has maintained such a successful partnership with Penn Police, other universities travel to Penn “to benchmark our patrol services,” said Heller.

She explained that Patrol officers are trained to target “anyone walking by themselves,” and although many students will accept this generous offer, those who don’t are given a card with the security officer’s name and the Penn Walk number should they require an escort in the future.

Although women tend to accept an escort offer more often than men, during the academic year Penn Patrol averages about 1,000 walks per month and has seen a steady increase in numbers since 1996.

According to AlliedBarton officer Larry More, Penn students are responsive to and appreciative of his presence. He also mentioned a community member who stopped to say “thank you for being here.”

DPS spokeswoman Stef Cella called the AlliedBarton officers “the eyes and ears” of the campus, as outside their escort duties, if they ever witness anything fishy, they will instantly radio into Penn Police’s Director of Operations and External Affiars. From there, an officer manning the cameras, police records and phones can zero in on a perpetrator, pull up any criminal records and dispatch the police, within seconds, Cella explained. Patrol officers are often responsible for initiating this chain reaction.

Despite the effectiveness of this service and the “dedicated group of students” that Walsh claims calls for an escort regularly, Heller stressed that AlliedBarton at Penn is always looking to promote this service to community at large, “to eliminate the opportunity for a community member to become a victim.”

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