Five years ago, Officer Brandon Gregory was just like the average student at A&T. As a motivated student, he accomplished what many current students set to achieve.

He was focused on his schoolwork, he maintained a social life, and ultimately he received his degree. Although Gregory can be compared in a lot of ways to the modern student, his views as a student regarding campus safety varies quite differently than many students on campus today.

“I wasn‘t really involved with a lot of crowds that may have been a troublesome crowd,” said Gregory. “I really didn‘t know what type of crime was going on unless it was a big uproar.”

Fast forward five years and the opinions of some students have changed.

“I do not feel too safe,” said sophomore marketing major Devon Green. “Almost everyone I know has had something taken from them.”

Despite claims of campus being unsafe, statistical data does not prove this theory. In 2010 the number of burglaries on campus has dropped to eight from the 54 reported in 2007 according to The Campus Safety and Security Data Analysis Cutting Tool.

In virtually every criminal offense that can be reported, there has been a steady decline in offenses on campus.

“Our campus is very safe,” said Police Chief Glenn Newell. “One of the first priorities Chancellor [Harold] Martin had even before he officially came to the university to become our new chancellor was that we needed to change this perception of campus safety.”

In 2009, when Martin took office, one of his top priorities was to improve campus and community safety. In his faculty and staff address, he noted that he wanted to create a safe and supportive living, learning, working and thriving environment.

In efforts to achieve this, Martin has created priorities that include increasing safety awareness; engaging surrounding off-campus communities to promote a quality living, learning, working, and thriving environment; fully implementing the University-wide Threat Assessment Program; and ensure compliance with regulatory and environmental standards.

On top of his priorities, Martin made an agreement with the Greensboro Police Department to patrol the surrounding communities of A&T, which was effective Nov. 1, 2009. Those areas include Campus Habitat, formally Riverwalk, as well as Campus Courtyard.

“From 2008 and before, there was a perception that campus was not safe,” said Newell. “It wasn’t necessarily because campus was not safe, it was just a lot of things happening on and off campus that all of a sudden created this perception.”

Recently new measures have taken place to ensure safety once the campus is officially closed for the day. Starting at 9:30 p.m. through 3 a.m. only students with valid AggieOne cards will be permitted to enter campus through John Mitchell Drive.

This was put in place to minimize the amounts of non-student loitering on this area commonly known as The Strip.

“We would have people not affiliated with the university to use John Mitchell as a strip,” said Newell. “They would drive down the street with their loud music playing trying to engage our female students in conversation, and it became a point of loitering.”

Most entrance gates are also closed so the police department can accurately monitor who comes on and off campus.

In addition to the checkpoint, more security officers and sworn-police officers have been placed to cover all residence halls.

In the past, coverage was from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Now the coverage has expanded to 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in all coed halls. In all female residences, there is a 24-hour security patrol.

According to Newell, plans were already in the works to place those dorms on a 24-hour patrol, however after the Morrow Hall incident in which an outsider barricaded himself in a female’s dorm room, those plans were sped up.

Overall, statistics show A&T to be a more of a safe haven than the surrounding Greensboro area.

Although these numbers are significantly lower than cross town UNCG who had 23 burglaries in 2009 compared to the 10 at A&T, Officer Gregory still feels that students should be more aware and conscious of their belongings.

According to Officer Gregory, who has always had a passion in helping people, one of the biggest problems he sees patrolling campus is larceny.

“Many students leave their dorm rooms unlocked,” said Gregory. “It is very easy for someone to take that play station, laptop, big screen TV especially if the door is unlocked.”

To ensure that students become more responsible for their belongings, security offices and police officers try to convey to students the importance of securing their belongings. Every security officers offers the service of engraving students belongings.

“At the end of the day we are concerned about the safety of students, faculty, and staff on campus,” said Newell.

 

• Kelcie McCrae