The George Washington University held a safety and security forum Thursday, where university officials addressed campus crime, preparations for potential emergencies and the role students can play in keeping GW safe.
Darrell Darnell, senior associate vice president for safety and security, described the university’s new emergency communication system, residence hall security, the 4-RIDE van service, GW’s threat assessment team and the Clery Act, a federal law requiring all colleges and universities to participate in federal financial aid programs to disclose information about crime that occurs on and nearby the campuses.
Under the Clery Act, GW is required to immediately notify the campus community upon confirmation of a significant emergency or dangerous situation on-campus involving an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees. The law also requires the university to publish a daily crime log and an annual security report.
The new alert system sends text messages and e-mails directly to students, faculty and staff if there is a threat on campus.
“I think we have a system that’s more reliable,” said Mr. Darnell. “We think it’s faster.”
GW community members must have their cell phone listed in Banner in order to receive a text message, and Mr. Darnell encouraged anyone who doesn’t to update their account information.
George Washington President Steven Knapp said the safety and security of students, faculty and staff is the university’s highest priority.
“Nothing takes precedence over that. Whatever other projects we’re involved in, whatever other initiatives we may undertake, whatever other aspirations we may be trying to achieve, our fundamental priority and always the first job for all of us is safety and security of the members of our community,” said Dr. Knapp.
The forum held Thursday evening at the Jack Morton Auditorium also featured a panel with GW Police Chief Kevin Hay; George Nunez, director of the Office of Emergency Management; William Flint, director of the Office of Health and Safety; and Dean of Students Peter Konwerski. GW community members were able to ask questions in-person or online.
Mr. Darnell said the university has to strike a balance between putting information out in a timely manner and ensuring the information is as accurate as possible.
“It would be a much bigger problem if we, just in a rush to get information out to satisfy people, put out wrong information,” said Mr. Hay.
The George Washington University Police Department, which is accredited by both the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies and the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement, is among the 1 percent of university police departments that are accredited.
GWPD has between 16-18 officers patrolling the Foggy Bottom Campus at all times, including 24-hour surveillance at Thurston Hall and Potomac House. GWPD will also be increasing its security in other residence halls. GWPD will provide surveillance from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. at City Hall, Mitchell Hall, Madison Hall, Crawford Hall, Amsterdam Hall, Ivory Tower and Lafayette Hall. Community Service Aides, which are GW students, will provide security from midnight to 4 a.m. at Fulbright Hall, The West End, JBKO Hall, South Hall, The Dakota, International House and Guthridge. GWPD officers will also patrol the Hall on Virginia Avenue, The Aston, 1959 E Street, Strong Hall, Building JJ, Townhouse Row, 2109 F Street, FSK, Munson and The Schenley. Three officers patrol the Mount Vernon Campus at all times, including an officer posted in the campuses’ gate house.
GWPD is in the process of increasing the number of personnel providing access control at the front doors of GW residence halls from five to 15.
According to Mr. Hay, GWPD makes 50 to 60 criminal arrests on campus each year. While all of these arrests are reported in GWPD’s daily crime log, not all are sent out as alerts to the GW community.
“We don’t want to put so many alerts out that they become meaningless. We don’t want to be the boy who cried wolf, where every other day you’re seeing an alert and you come to the point where you might ignore it,” said Mr. Hay. “When we send you a GW Alert, we want you to read it.”
The university officials participating in the forum had several pieces of advice for students on how to minimize their risks. Lock your doors before leaving the residence hall. Don’t leave your laptop unattended in the library. Don’t walk and text at the same time.
Students should also program GWPD’s number (Foggy Bottom Campus: 202-994-6111, Mount Vernon Campus: 202-242-6111) into their cell phones and pick up a copy of GW’s Emergency Preparedness Plan, which is available online. There’s also a pocket guide.
But the most important thing students can do to help keep GW safe is follow the “see something, say something” policy.
“Safety and security is really a community effort. Officers can’t be everywhere. We don’t see everything, and we don’t hear everything,” said Mr. Darnell. “We really need all of you to say something if you see something suspicious. If your instincts tell you something is wrong, your instincts are probably right. Pick up the phone and give us a call. It can be anonymous, and no one will ever have to know.”
Law enforcement studies show that when communities get invested and engage with police, crime decreases and safety goes up. GW’s anonymous tip line is 202-994-TIPS.
GW’s 4-RIDE, a security service for late night transportation around campus, is now allowing users to make reservations online at my.gwu.edu and book trips up to two hours in advance beginning at 6:30 p.m. Users can also receive an e-mail or text notification when the shuttle is on the way.
Mr. Darnell said he thinks George Washington is as safe as it can possibly be thanks to its policies, resources and trained officers.
“I can’t guarantee that 100 percent of the time we won’t have crime. No one can guarantee that. That’s just not the world we live in,” said Mr. Darnell. “But what I can guarantee is that we’ll work hard. We’ll continue to make sure our people are trained and that we have the right policies in place. And we’ll continue to work with our partners to make sure that we’re doing everything we possibly can.”