This is the third in my series of letters to you related to safety. Today, with Chief of Police Dennis DuVal and David Eade of the Syracuse Property Owners Association, I have announced a partnership for student safety that will deploy additional police patrols in the areas around the University where many students live.
The patrols will take place in the evening, Sunday through Thursday, during a four-hour time period. On Friday and Saturday, the existing Neighborhood Patrol will continue. I am also pleased to announce that both patrols will cover a broader area that includes more off-campus student housing. We will continue to monitor crime activity in the University area and make adjustments in these patrols as necessary.
Additional safety concerns have been raised by students who use the Syracuse Stage complex on East Genesee Street. The new patrol zone is focused on student housing and will not extend to Syracuse Stage. A team is being assembled to work with business owners in the area to enhance safety on the west side of campus. I will report our progress to you in the next several days.
Improved security requires more than increased patrols. By fall 2002, Syracuse University will establish an Office of Off Campus Student Services, which will focus on the needs of off-campus students. Off campus services will be our first priority in allocating funds from the new co-curricular fee. In the meantime, the Syracuse University in the Community Program is coordinating open forums on safety and also offers a handbook and a web site (http://students.syr.edu/offcampusliving/) with crime prevention tips and other useful information.
I am pleased by the number of students who have become involved in the conversation about safety. The Residence Hall Association is hosting an open forum next week on this topic, and many of you have been writing to me in response to my earlier letters with ideas to improve security on and off campus. You should know that we are reviewing each of your suggestions and will continue to make improvements.
Safety is a shared responsibility of students, faculty, staff, and our community partners. I appreciate your help as we work to make Syracuse University and the surrounding community a safer place to live and learn.
Sincerely,
Kenneth A. Shaw
