“*It’s been a very positive experience, and has made some great contacts between the students and the surrounding neighborhood.*”
-Sgt. Arthur Koch

If you’re out taking a stroll around campus at night, chances are you have seen the new police-looking officers patrolling the area. Adorned in shiny reflective yellow vests, it would be hard to miss them. They’re campus SAFE officers, and they’re not quite police, but they are affiliated with them.

Beginning January 18, SAFE (Safety Awareness For Everyone) officers have been patrolling the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus and also in surrounding areas on foot, from as far north as Shorewood and as far west as the Milwaukee river. Wherever there is a high student population they will be patrolling. On any given night there are two to eight SAFE officers on patrol from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

UWM Police Department Sgt. Arthur Koch helped train the first round of SAFE officers during winter break, and he believes the program has already seen some great results.

“I think they have been working really well, and we want people to know about the impacts. We have the success stories posted online. I think the program is good for the students, the campus, and the community,” Koch said. “It’s been a very positive experience, and has made some great contacts between the students and the surrounding neighborhood.”

There have been five SAFE patrol updates on the campus police website. So far the program has stopped graffiti, aided a fallen man, prevented several thefts and more.

There are currently 14 active SAFE officers working with the campus police department. The organizers of the SAFE patrols are working to expand the program, and hope to have a team of 30 SAFE officers in the near future. They are currently taking and reviewing applications, and another training session will be held over spring break.

“We’ve got a continuous recruitment going on right now, we will keep hiring until we have enough,” said Koch, “There is no minimum requirement for the position. Many of the applicants are criminal justice majors, but not all. We do not require you to be a student to apply.”

Public Hearing

The Campus Safety Task Force held a public hearing last Wednesday evening to field questions and concerns from the community, with the sparsely attended forum focused primarily on the SAFE Walkers program, and what their responsibilities entail.

UWM Police Chief Pam Hodermann stated that while SAFE Walker officers have received self-defense and training in “verbal judo” to diffuse potential confrontations, they are being used more as additional eyes and ears in the neighborhood. Officers carry police radios and are out on the street to aid law enforcement and simply be an additional positive presence in the community.

Another key for the Task Force is hiring additional officers. While the department is looking to hire nine additional officers in the near future, some roadblocks remain in making that happen.

“The hiring process takes awhile, and we are understaffed,” said Hodermann. “So we have been looking at creative ways like the SAFE Walkers program to add people.”

Resources are also an issue in hiring more staff and purchasing the kind of technology to help make our campus safer.

The idea of adding additional security cameras around campus has been floated, but the extra eyes the cameras provide would be extremely costly.

Announced on Nov. 20 of last year, the Campus Safety Task Force was created to analyze current campus safety policies and procedures, and offer recommendations to Chancellor Carlos Santiago. At that time, several safety proposals made by the Safe Campus Committee such as adding more officers and police vehicles, extending BOSS hours, and the creation of student foot patrols were adopted.

The force is headed by Chairman Stan Stojkovic and features a variety of criminal justice professionals and campus leaders. Recommendations from the task force are expected to be formally presented to the chancellor sometime in April.

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