Max Bickley – General Assignment Reporter
Though it is the time of the year for candy and superhero costumes, on our campus there are actual students on campus who work to keep students safe. On Southern’s campus, the fraternity brothers of Beta Mu Sigma go out on patrols around campus to act as an extension of the police. This campus watch is a volunteer program run by the members of the Beta Mu Sigma fraternity and, according to member Mike Iannantuoni, is not something new to Southern.
“Campus Watch is a volunteer based service that brothers of Beta Mu Sigma started a number of years ago and still runs today,” Iannantuoni said, “We walk around campus in pairs from 6 pm to 10 pm Monday through Thursday evenings. All of the active brothers take part in Campus Watch and we each have a schedule with shifts every week.”
From its initial description, Campus Watch is a service provided for the past few years and operates within the fraternity itself. When it comes to the purpose of Campus Watch, and its goals, it is for the safety of students on Southern’s campus.
“We work alongside the Southern police department, patrolling campus, acting as extra eyes and ears for the police,” said Iannantuoni.
Many students in previous years have read emails regarding different occurrences of crimes being committed on campus. This year alone there were two robberies on Pine Rock Ave., and in situations like this, Campus Watch does have a level of protocol in such situations.
“We haven’t actually come across serious criminal activity during a patrol,” Iannantuoni said, “however, if we were ever to come across one we have a radio which we would use to call the police, who would have an officer at our location in less than a minute. Also, we have adjusted our patrols this year to cover Pine Rock Ave. to North Campus.”
However, the Watch does not only interact with the police as an extension of their capabilities, but also as a service for students on campus, escorting them where they need to go on campus if they do not feel safe going alone at night.
“We are also an escort service,” Iannantuoni said, “if a student feels that they need an escort to their car or dorm room they can call the police station and the police will radio us to the location of the student and we will escort them to wherever they need to go.”
The members of the Watch are also easily identifiable by their uniforms, and also the equipment which they carry. It is also their equipment which is their main method of deterrence should they come upon any criminal activity on their patrols.
“We go out in reflective vests, carrying flashlights and a radio,” Iannanutoni said, “ and the flashlights we carry have a strobe feature which is extremely bright and can blind someone if shined in their eyes.”
With all this in their service and years of practice behind them, their goal is to act as a student service for helping other students feel a sense of safety on campus.
“We are out there to make the students feel safe,” said Iannantuoni, “ that is our first and utmost goal.”
Photo Credit: Derek Torrellas
