Above photo: At night, the USF St. Petersburg campus shows safety hazards and concerns that are hidden during the day. Courtesy of Christopher Guinn
By Luke Cross
To a student, a blown-out streetlight on campus is an inconvenience. To a mugger, it’s an opportunity.
USF St. Petersburg’s Office of Safety and Compliance recognizes these hidden hazards and offers students a chance to address them during the Night Time Safety Walk. Wednesday, March 28 marked the fourth annual Night Time Safety Walk, where students are given free pizza in return for identifying safety issues around campus.
“We walk campus all the time during the day, but not often at night,” said Guy Van Asten, safety and compliance officer for the university. “Some safety issues are just easier to see at night.”
The 28 students who attended the walk were split into groups to scour the campus alongside University Police Department officers.
“I’m ecstatic over the turnout. I would love to have 200 show, but I know reality isn’t like that,” said Van Asten.
Students were armed with flashing green LED batons and a few rules of thumb to identify potential safety issues. The finger-width rule, for instance, is used to judge whether a raised walkway section could be a tripping hazard.
Between identifying and recording safety concerns, group leaders passed the time sharing their knowledge of the campus and conversing with the students.
“The group leaders were really knowledgeable about campus, so it was nice to learn about its history,” said Edward Leonard, freshman finance major. “I never would’ve known the Marine Science Labs were used back in World War II.”
The walk also gave students an opportunity to meet new faces and explore areas they would have otherwise missed.
“It’s good to know our campus is a little safer, and getting to talk to some other students is nice,” said John Schiller, junior environmental science and policy major.
Beyond identifying poorly lit areas and broken walkways, the Night Time Safety Walks are a means of bolstering the campus community and connecting students.
“It’s ultimately about community, because that’s how you make a better, safer campus. We rely on each other to stay safe,” said Van Asten.
Given the success of previous walks, the Office of Safety and Compliance is looking to host one walk a semester in the future.
“Hopefully it will help students to get involved and meet others on campus,” said Van Asten. “It’s so important to become part of the community — not just for themselves, but also for the university on the whole.”
Any on-campus safety concerns can be submitted to the Office of Safety and Compliance through http://www.usfsp.edu/safety-and-compliance/.
