By: Jazmon Ross
photo by Jazmon Ross
With Georgia State University having an open campus in the heart of downtown Atlanta, students are exposed to a city life that can be benefiting and intimidating. GSU police are obliged to lessen the intimidation of campus life and heighten the security.
When asked, the majority of students said that when they were accepted to GSU, their parents were hesitant to loosen their reigns because of the university’s non-traditional campus and its location.
“The good thing about the location is that it gives a lot more opportunities to link up with people that will help you get closer to what you’re looking for, as far as career options,” junior Cany Ede-Ifeobu said. “But at the same time, you have a bunch of students and people targeting them. Everything is around you.”
According to the Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education, Atlanta is seventh in student enrollment among America’s largest urban areas. The ratio of students flooding the city streets is at an all-time high, which means more law enforcement are needed to secure the non-traditional campus.
The most commonly reported campus crime is “snatch theft.” Being that GSU’s campus is open to the public, interactions are inevitable, but if students follow the proper safety measures, they will know how to avoid certain situations. Theft incidents are usually crimes of opportunity, but criminals are always looking for their next easy target.
While students may just find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, there are steps that can be taken to avoid becoming the victim of such crimes. GSU police encourage students to be aware of their surroundings at all times and walk in groups if possible. Another tip for avoiding snatch-theft incidents is to keep mobile devices out of sight when walking down the street.
Many students are also concerned about the prominence of homelessness on this non-traditional campus. As stated by the Atlanta Mission, there are about 7,000 homeless people in Atlanta.
The surge of homelessness throughout GSU’s open campus is tough for students to get used to. It is also tough on police officers who patrol an open campus that invites the general public to wander freely, all while balancing the safety of students and communal service toward the members of the community who are often forgotten.
“We are here for students and the community knows that we’re available,” Field Training Officer Eric Aguiar said. “Public safety is everybody’s main concern, so we make sure that we’re responding to issues with professionalism and coming up with other ways to help the community orchestrate their resources.”
The Homeless Outreach Proactive Engagement (HOPE) program is an initiative brought on by GSU’s police department with the mission of assisting and informing those who are less fortunate of the resources that are available, such as local churches and medical centers.
Aside from GSU police taking on the role of community outreach and student protection, they also accept their part in educating the student body. Throughout the course of each semester, GSU police seek to educate students on the importance of campus safety by way of seminars and comprehensive classes. Courses offered, such as Fight to Flight and Sexual Misconduct, are primarily focused on crime prevention and self-defense.
One class in particular that makes use of hands-on education is Alcohol Awareness. One might believe that it would be quite difficult to operate a golf cart around a set of cones and walk in a straight line, all while wearing vision-obscuring goggles. Well, GSU police use this very method to teach students the dangers of driving under the influence and let them see, firsthand, the importance of pedestrian safety.
These nationally credited classes are ways for students to learn about proper safety measures, both academically and hands-on. Students are taught practical lessons that range from conditioning their bodies for quick responses and recognizing state law, to applying safety tips to any given scenario.
It is important for police to include students and parents in their efforts. Social media is one of the department’s fun and interactive tools used to make parents feel both involved in their child’s college life and confident in campus police. The GSU Police Department runs its own media accounts on social sites such as Twitter and Facebook, which are used to promote community outreach events, share information about ongoing criminal investigations and gain feedback from fellow community members.
In addition, the LiveSafe mobile app is changing the dynamics of social communication between police and the student body. Provided for both iPhone and Android users, the app allows two-way communication between students and officials through text, audio and video. Students can share their locations during emergencies and get access to safety resources. Through the app, users may also send in anonymous tips for criminal reports.
As an effort to reassure parents of campus safety, LiveSafe provides a SafeWalk feature that invites parents to virtually walk with their child to his or her destination and receive a notification when that child has safely arrived.
“I think the chief is doing a great job with the added initiatives, as far as good visibility plans, the partnership with Atlanta Ambassador, and the resource projects set in place,” Aguiar said.
Even though GSU’s non-traditional campus presents a challenge to the police department, GSU officials do a great job of assuming the responsibility of maintaining student safety, family incorporation, and community service. If students, faculty or parents have any safety concerns and anonymous tips or would like to receive daily notifications, more information on the GSU Police Department can be found here.