Safety at Saint Xavier University has become a growing concern.
The most recent concern with campus safety was raised by an email sent to the student body last week, recounting an event that occurred on the evening of January 28, around 8:45 pm.
The email reported that an unknown male approached a graduate student in the nursing wing parking lot at this time, attempting to take her backpack with force. The graduate student, engaging in self-defense, kneed the man and was able to drive away without being hurt.
This incident followed the recent reports of safety concerns regarding the previously-owned SXU apartments at the Parkside Village and the Komensky apartments.
In an interview, Christine M. Wiseman, President of Saint Xavier University, described the safety measures being taken at SXU.
“I met with John Pelrine, Vice President of Student Affairs, to whom Public Safety reports. I also met with Jack Touhy, Chief of Police for Campus Safety, and asked them to provide me with a report for our ability to meet and address the current spectrum of safety concerns,” Wiseman explained.
In the meeting, Wiseman was informed that the entire Campus Police Force has become a part of Student Affairs, which she believes will benefit the safety of everyone of the SXU community.
“They know the students, the students know them, and they are a part of this campus community,” she stated.
President Wiseman also described the personal action that Chief Police Touhy has been taking to ensure the safest possible conditions at SXU.
“Officer Touhy tells me that, since his arrival here in July, he has been evaluating our equipment because the listing was not current, [including] our computer equipment, our surveillance equipment, and other equipment. He also has been doing building surveys, unit by unit, to assess the availability of safety equipment and safety measures into each of those buildings, and they are in the process of completion.
He will be producing a one, three, and five-year plan of upgrades. This will encompass other departments across the university. They are looking at ingress, egress, locks, cameras, swipe access, and a host of other issues.”
According to the campus news poll, the majority of students polled identified that they feel safe at SXU.
When asked about her personal opinion regarding the university’s security, President Wiseman stated that she was confident in the school’s safety.
“I feel safe on this campus. I am here at the same hours as many of our students and campus personal.
The reality is, you cannot protect against every single issue that might arise. As issues arise, people create new measures. It’s almost impossible to anticipate and protect against every single conceivable hazard.”
She continued, “I think that we are as safe as most educational institutions of our nature. There is always a dichotomy between running an open and welcoming campus environment that does not create unnecessary suspicions about people and making sure that our people here, and everyone in this community is safe.
That’s really a balancing of needs, the needs of our students, of our communities, and the safety issues, but we are prepared, and we have done lots of risk assessment. We have campus measures already placed- emergency measures and security measures.”
Nicole Rosales
Senior News Editor