The Department of Campus Safety (DCS), in partnership with the Denver Police Department (DPD), held a SafeTalk event on Jan. 28 in Anderson Academic Commons. It aimed to engage the DU community in feedback, information and discussion, said Don Enloe, Director of Campus Safety.
The event was the first in a series of open forum discussions about Campus Safety. Four main panelists represented DCS at the event: Enloe; Michael Holt, Commander; James Johnston, Community Partnerships and Training Coordinator; and Melissa Yates, Manager of Parking and Transportation Services. There were also multiple Campus Safety officers in attendance, plus two representatives from DPD.
Attendance was low at this inaugural event, with approximately 10 students and community members present, but it did not deter the conversation. The discussion opened with two students who were involved in a potential assault situation in October expressing concerns about how their incident was handled.
“It was not a positive experience…it felt like we were being blamed for the situation,” said one of the students describing the incident.
In response, the DCS representatives apologized for the situation, describing some of the limitations as well as their regret at how the situation was handled.
“That was inappropriate and I apologize,” said Enloe, addressing the decisions made in the incident.
The DCS representatives, guided by audience questions and concerns, explored some of the issues and limitations DCS is faced with on a day-to-day basis. Jurisdiction and resources were two large limitations expressed by the department representatives. Outside of campus property, officers do not have the jurisdiction to perform their duties.
“Our authority, our responsibility, our liability ends at campus line,” said Enloe, addressing concerns that the two students were close to campus, but not on campus.
In addition, Campus Safety has a limited number of officers, who are often in high demand at night or on holidays. As a result, some incidents may not receive attention at those times.
“A lot of it is about timing…we have limited resources,” said Enloe.
The discussion also addressed communication between DCS and the community. According to Enloe, the event was established as a step toward improving communication. The DCS representatives expressed that a goal of the department is to engage with the community more. The representatives from DPD also stated that they will attempt to increase communications about area incidents to the DU community.
In the meantime, DPD has a regular discussion and updates of area crime on Nextdoor, a communications website which provides neighborhoods with a private social network of incidents and events.
“We’re very open to ways to get the message out there,” said Enloe.
Some of the audience suggestions were also accepted by the DCS representatives, including an effort to include safety updates in the DU Digest and create partnerships with the Undergraduate Student Government and Greek life.
Several audience members then voiced concerns about victim-blaming, especially when involving sexual assault. Enloe explained that there has been more training for officers in this area, which will also increase in the next year. He also said DCS offers self-defense classes for men and women, which are aimed at educating individuals on defense, as well as how not to engage with individuals, especially when intoxicated.
“It’s like alcohol…it’s a culture. We start with education,” said Enloe.
He and an audience member associated with the Center for Advocacy, Prevention, and Empowerment (CAPE) also indicated that, while these steps are important for administration, student leaders need to truly undertake the movement against sexual assault for success.
The event addressed other related concerns about DCS, including its functions and its relative size. Attendees of the event received printed results of the Campus Safety 2014 Community Survey, which demonstrated the need for increased communication, with just 59 percent of those surveyed satisfied with DCS. Full results can be found on Campus Safety website.
The event will be the first of many forums to increase community education and communication.
“Small attendance won’t deter us from continuing to do this…we will continue to do this,” said Johnston. He also asserted that future events, which are yet to be scheduled, will occur at different times and days to reach as much of the community as possible.
The Department of Campus Safety has a Facebook page and a Twitter account where students can receive updates from the department, including future SafeTalk events and self defense class information.
