Under a new community policing plan that Col. Paul Verrecchia, Capt. Emil Fioravanti and Vice President for Administration Walter Hunter presented to the Undergraduate Council of Students Wednesday night, Department of Public Safety officers will be required to eat their meals at on-campus dining halls as one of several efforts to foster closer, more familiar relationships with students and community members.
Verrecchia told The Herald that he hopes to fully implement the plan by Nov. 1.
The new system is modeled on systems in use by Harvard and Rice universities and calls for splitting the campus into two regions, each under the control of a lieutenant. George Street will separate the North and South regions; within each region, officers will take charge of small areas and buildings where they can make contact with residential counselors and other building occupants. "It will give the officers ownership of an area," Verrecchia said.
DPS officers stopped their policy of patrolling dormitory hallways this fall, cutting down on officer-student interactions and "personal contacts with students in the students' domain," Verrecchia said. "We needed to come up with a program where we maintain that contact with the students."
A UCS representative said he was concerned whether officers would be receptive to the idea of eating meals with students, but Verrecchia said officers' reactions had been mostly positive.
"Some officers may feel intimidated to sit down and say, 'Hi, can I eat with you?" he said.
