Public Safety to hire police officers
Posted on Jul 28, 2008
As part of a statewide effort to improve the safety and security at university campuses, UW-River Falls Public Safety is in the process of hiring two certified police officers for the fall semester.
The change is one that the administration finds absolutely necessary.
“It’s a new world,” Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance Mary Halada said. “Students have caused severe harm to their fellow students. It’s something that didn’t even enter our heads before.”
In the wake of high-profile student shootings at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University, colleges across the nation have begun to take the threat of campus violence more seriously. In 2007, UW System President Kevin Riley established the President’s Commission on University Security, a task force that looked at security across the UW System, in an effort to establish standards for public safety on UW campuses.
One recommendation of the task force, which included UWRF Public Safety Director Richard Trende, was that all 13 of the system’s four-year campuses employ law enforcement officers that are “effectively armed, trained and properly equipped to respond to law enforcement emergencies, including active shooters.”
At the time of the report, UWRF was the only four-year college without sworn police officers on staff. The Public Safety department employed five full-time and four part-time security officers to protect the campus. The staff members have only a fraction of the authority given to full-fledged police officers.
For this reason, Trende, in line with the committee’s recommendations, suggested that the administration at UWRF add at least six full-time police officers, and supporting staff, to its payroll over the next few years. This, Trende said, would provide the campus with the 24-hour security it needs. This summer’s new hires are “just the beginning” of that initiative, Halada said.
The specific role of these new positions, however, remains vague. The official job descriptions are classified and will not be released to the public until the complicated review process is complete, Human Resources Manager Deb Schwab said.
Even if they never have to face a crisis, the constant presence of police will add a much-needed sense of security to the UWRF community, Halada said.
“It’s really all about the comfort of the students and faculty and staff,” she said. “It allows us to act more quickly, to be more efficient and effective.”
The addition of on-campus police will not alter the University’s close collaboration with the RFPD, who routinely provide assistance to Public Safety, Halada said.
Junior Kirsten Farrar questions the need for an increased police presence, especially with a fully-staffed police station close to campus.
“Just because other campuses do have certified police officers doesn’t mean that we need to be just like them,” Farrar said. “If an issue is too big for [Public Safety] to take on, they have the access of the RF police department only a few blocks from campus.”
Trende previously held the position of police chief in Hudson, Wis., before taking the position at Public Safety. During the 2007-2008 school year, former Chancellor Don Betz gave Trende permission to carry a handgun while on duty, Halada said. The question of whether to arm the new officers is still up for debate.
“We haven’t gone there yet”, she said. “But we’ll be having discussions on that soon.”