Interview with Debbie Patch, Associate
Director, The Office of Public Safety
Fresh@News:
As the second semester
moves along, do you have any safety tips for students?
D.P.
During this time of the year, many students get into a
comfortable mode and become less cautious with their belongings. We encourage students to remember some of the
basic safety tips, so they can avoid being victims to crime. For example, resident students should not
prop open the doors to the buildings, they should keep their doors shut
and
locked when they are out of the room, and also they should never leave
their
belongings (such as laptops and backpacks) unattended in open areas. These are simple things that most students are
already doing.
Fresh@News: Often,
parents are interested in the health
and safety of their students on campus.
Can you tell me a little about how the Office of Public Safety
creates a
safe environment?
D.P. Our department
performs daily patrols of the campus.
The goal of the department is to provide a safe and secure
environment
for University community members.
Accomplishing this goal also includes educating students about
personal
safety and crime prevention. We have an
anonymous tip line for students who witness crimes such as vandalism on
campus. The tip line has been helpful in
identifying the culprit in many cases.
The Public Safety website is a great resource for students and
parents. Students can find information
and online forms on the site, in addition to the campus crime
statistics.
Fresh@News: You talked about
safety in the residence halls. Does
Public Safety work with Residence Life staff?
D.P.
Each year, our office works closely with the RA
staff. We will begin working with next
year’s staff as soon as they are selected and then will continue to
work with
the staff throughout the summer. During
the school year, the RA is often the primary contact person when there
is a
problem in the hall. The RAs work with
the housing officers that are stationed within the buildings. As I mentioned earlier, our staff also
performs daily patrol of the campus, including the residence halls.
Fresh@News: What
is a housing officer?
D.P. A
housing officer is actually a Public Safety officer
who monitors visitation and maintains a fixed position in the residence
halls
from 10:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m., with the exception of the West Campus
apartments. Everyone who enters the
building must show identification. All
of the female residence halls have housing officers. Many
of the co-ed residence halls also have
housing officers. We also have officers
that patrol all of the residence halls during the evenings and on the
weekends.
Fresh@News: Can you tell me about the Wildcat shuttle?
D.P.
The Wildcat shuttle provides on and off campus
transportation for students. The shuttle
performs an on campus loop Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00
p.m. The daily shuttle off campus has
stops such as Rosemont Square, Harcum College, and Bryn Mawr Hospital.
This
shuttle runs 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. on week days and on the weekend
from noon
to 8 p.m. There are now three weekend off-campus shuttles. The East
Main Line
shuttle has stops at many popular locations on the Main Line such as
Hope’s
Cookies, Peace A Pizza and Suburban Square. This shuttle runs Fridays
and
Saturdays from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. We also recently added the
Minella’s
Diner Shuttle which runs Fridays and Saturdays from 11:30 p.m. to 2:00
a.m. There is also a shuttle to the King of
Prussia Mall that operates on Fridays between 6:00 p.m. and 12:30 a.m.
and on
Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. The
shuttle service does not operate during break periods. Students
can find the shuttle schedule on the
Public Safety web site.
Fresh@News: The RAD self-defense program for women seems to be very popular. Can you tell me more about it?
D.P. RAD is an
acronym for Rape Aggression Defense. The
RAD program was started by a law enforcement officer who wanted to
teach women
basic self-defense techniques. The
techniques are easy to remember and very practical. The
RAD program at Villanova is a series of
workshops that educate women about sexual assault and teaches them how
to
protect themselves. As an instructor in
the program, we talk about risk reduction and ways to avoid risks. The women leave the program feeling empowered
and are more aware of their surroundings.
The program is very effective and the participants have the
opportunity
to do a real life simulation to test their knowledge.
Fresh@News: It sounds like a great opportunity for female students. Is there a cost for the program?
D.P. We
ask for a $15 refundable deposit at the beginning of
the class. When the student completes
the course, we will refund the money.
Fresh@News: Nine
hours seems like a big commitment for
students? How is the attendance?
D.P. Although it may
seem like a lot of time, the information these women learn is
invaluable. We are very flexible and try to
work with the
students’ schedules to find a time that works with everyone in the
class. Often, a group of friends will sign up
together. They really enjoy the program
and have nothing but positive things to say about it.
Fresh@News: You’ve provided a lot of information about Public Safety. If you had to give any advice to parents, what would you tell them?
D.P. I would encourage them to communicate with their son or daughter. For the most part, students will make smart decisions, but an honest mistake or poor decision can impact the rest of their lives. If students see something and are afraid to report it, I hope parents will remind them about the anonymous tip line. Lastly, I hope that parents will check out the Public Safety web site (www.publicsafety.villanova.edu). It has a lot of helpful information and resources.
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