QUILFORDIAN
Security programs aim to heighten
campus safety and awareness
Eric Michael Kaplan
Staff Writer
Guilford's entire college community is
experiencing the first wave of a dramatic
"new revolution" in campus security and
safety.
Three new security systems the
E[mergency]-Phones, the Whistle Alert-
Defense Program and the new Bicycle Reg
istration program have all recently been
incorporatedinto the Guilford community
system to heighten campus safety and aware
ness.
"College campus security is the hot topic
around the country right now," said Assis
tant Director of Security and Safety Mary
Ann Weedon, "and the administration of
Guilford College is prepared to back our
new security department programs 100%.
People know how important security on
campus really is, and it's obvious because
photo by Joan Malloch
Found It First , a Guilford student band, will open for
Dreams So Real Saturday evening at 5:45 pm, by the
lake. The bands are just one of many events during
UROFEST.
S3EEBQI
Vol. 76, No. 4 Guilford College, Greensboro, N.C.
the acceptance and support from the stu
dents and administration has been phenom
enal thus far."
Half-time of the Family Weekend foot
ball game was the official kickoff of the
Whistle Alert-Defense Program. The new
alert whistles rang out over the stadium and
off into the horizon, signifying the official
start of the program and marking the start of
a new era in safety at Guilford College.
Alert whistles are to be used by students
who arc in danger, who are witnessing a
crime in progress or who need any immedi
ate emergency response. Wccdon says they
are much louder than a cry from somewhere
in the dark, would scare off an attacker and
would bringhelp fast.
The new system is the first in which
students are directly involved with the safety
and security of Guilford. "Motivation to
help and to get involved is what we need at
this point," said Wccdon. "Security can't do
it all; wc need that extra set of eyes and cars
in the environment out there."
The Whistle Alert-Defense system is the
first and only one of its kind on any North
Carolina college campus. The solid brass
whistles arc available for $.99 in the school
bookstore.
New E-Phoncs will also be installed within
the next few weeks. Three tall, slender, blue
lights will illuminate the walkway leading
to the new campus apartments. In the case of
an emergency at night, the blue lights will
quickly turn into bright emergency strobes
and a direct line to the 24-hour security
dispatch, all at the touch of a button on one
of these phones.
Security's dispatcher in the Bauman tele
communications center can instantly tell
which alarm was triggered and send help
immediately, which is especially important
if the person in distress is unable to talk into
the speaker phone.
Depending on the initial success of the
three new phones, more E-Phoncs will be
installed in various locations around cam
pus as the school's budget allows.
The third of the new programs at Guilford
is a mandatory bicycle registration. For a fee
of sl, students with bicycles on campus can
have a permanent record and registration
number to secure the safety of this personal
property.
Through the new registration system,
thefts will be greatly discouraged and the
permanent records will aid in filing police
reports and insurance claims. If a stolen bike
is recovered, the identity of the owner can
quickly be ascertained by the registration
sticker.
The new systems are the first of many to
be implemented by the Guilford College
Division of Security and Safety. In the near
future, for example, a SADD (Students
Against Drunk Driving) chapter will be in
troduced to the community.
October is also National Crime Preven
tion Month. Several programs will be held
on campus including various safety issues
like date rape. A seminar on self-defense
and a program on substance abuse education
will also be available to Guilford students
this month.
MUiiajJMIIiTOMI
Guilford is a
"best buy"
Courtesy College Relations
Guilford College is one of 19 colleges
chosen nationwide and featured as "Best
Buys in Top Colleges" in the October issue
of Kiplingers's Personal Finance Maga
zine (formerly Changing Times). Premier
institutions were chosen from all the nation's
1,500 accredited four-yearcollegesand uni
versities with 100 or more students. The
magazine states, "These 19 colleges provide
Ivy League-class educations at affordable
costs."
Criteria for selection included: range of
appeal, student quality, retention rate, avail
ability of on-campus housing, external re
views and cost. Other considerations were:
the prestige of the institution, the graduation
rate, the desirability of location and the tone
of the campus environment.
Researcher Martin Ncmko, Ph.D., author
of the article, specializes in the evaluation of
educational programs. He refers to the win
ning institutions as "superlative choices for
the good student," adding that "they would
be so even if they cost much more."
Three other North Carolina institutions
arc also cited in the article: Davidson Col
lege, Wake Forest University and The Uni
versity of North Carolina. There were 18
runncrs-up, none of which was in North
Carolina.
In the opinion of the author, who is a
consultant to college-bound students and
their families, there are four keys to a quality
education: "a top-notch student body, first
rate instruction, an exciting learning and
living community, and a widely-respected
diploma."
Each of the 37 top-rated institutions un
derwent further scrutiny, with each admis
sions officer and student newspaper editor
answering a 20-item phone interview and a
30-itcm survey, yielding an assessment of
campus life in and out of the classroom.
The researchers' poll of guidance coun
selors listed Guilford "among the nation's
best in 'sense of community,' 'most under
rated' and 'most responsive to student
needs.'"
Guilford was recently rated in the top 10
percent of 1 iberal arts col leges in the country
by the Carnegie Foundation for the Ad
vancement of Teaching.
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