Tuesday, September 25, 2001

Campuses Beef Up Security, Increasing Patrols and ID Checks By DANA MULHAUSER Colleges are putting in place new security measures to combat potential terrorism, notably an increase in the number of police patrols on campus. The University of Pennsylvania has taken some of the toughest steps: adding police and security officers, closing a main campus thoroughfare to traffic, and speeding up efforts to have all students and staff wear identification badges. Penn already requires people to have the ID cards to enter most campus buildings, including dormitories. Many university staff members will begin wearing the badges as soon as the holders arrive, but students will not be required to wear them quite yet. Maureen S. Rush, vice president for public safety, is not sure how the university will persuade students to wear the badges. "They are attractive and convenient," she offered. "If the police don't enforce it, no one's going to wear it," said Daniel Trisdorfer, a Penn sophomore. Penn has also closed Locust Walk, the central campus artery, to all but emergency vehicles. Previously, the walkway was open to construction vehicles and other university vehicles. "For obvious reasons, we don't want trucks parked there," Ms. Rush said. The university has put an extra six to eight police and security officers on duty every night, an increase of about 20 percent, Ms. Rush said. At the University of California at Los Angeles, police officers are trying to make their patrols more visible around campus. "For students and staff, they want to see us," said Nancy Greenstein, director of police community services at the university. "The perception is really important." Police officers at many campuses are also providing added protection to international students, trying to prevent harassment and violence aimed at Muslim and Arab students. UCLA has set up a new Web site for the anonymous reporting of hate crimes, and it and other colleges are concentrating patrols near dormitories and cultural centers for international students. Across the country, "most of our energy has been spent on dealing with athletic events," said Oliver J. Clark, president of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators. (See an article from The Chronicle, September 24, 2001.) Colleges have also devoted extra attention to preparing for bomb threats and rehearsing evacuation scenarios, he said. "I think universities are more prepared to handle the events that are going on now than your average communities are," said Mr. Clark, who is also the chief of police at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The greatest security threats involve "large assemblies and younger folks, and we deal with them on a regular basis." Mr. Clark has an added concern: a regional airport run by the university, to which he has deployed extra security. Colleges located away from urban centers have taken a milder approach to security measures. Valdosta State University, on the Georgia coastline, has increased police patrols and reviewed emergency measures, but campus police officials are taking a wait-and-see attitude. "We're going to just watch the news and keep our eyes and ears open," said H. Scott Doner, the college's director of public safety. Easy-to-print version E-mail this article

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