BY JEFF BRANSCOME
University of Mary Washington President Judy Hample said yesterday that she wants university police to be more visible on campus.
"There's not a sense that they're working among us so much," she said in an interview. Perhaps, she said, more officers could use bicycles or Segway scooters instead of monitoring the campus in cars.
At Hample's direction, UMW is forming a task force to address campus safety. A committee of the university's board of visitors briefly discussed the initiative yesterday.
UMW was the site of high-profile crimes last year. A student was raped in the school's parking garage, and a jogger was attacked near the university's track on Hanover Street.
Executive Vice President Rick Hurley, who Hample said will co-chair the task force along with Vice President for Student Affairs Doug Searcy, said he hopes to appoint about 10 members before winter break. Students and faculty and staff would be among those involved.
Hample announced plans for a task force in the wake of a campus safety walk in September during which she used a blue-light phone in UMW's parking garage to fake an emergency.
At one point, she told a campus dispatcher that a man who was preventing her from entering her car might have a gun, students told The Free Lance-Star.
Campus police didn't know it was a test, which Hample said she performed in her "official capacity."
A university spokesman said it took officers six minutes to arrive at the garage, but Hample saw room for improvement. Police responded on foot and in cars with lights and sirens on.
Hample identified herself as Judy Hample during the call. A UMW spokesman said campus police should have known it was a drill and blamed the confusion on a "failure in some internal communication."
UMW has had problems with blue-light phones in the past, and Hample said yesterday that she "wanted to find out decisively what the problem was."
Some praised Hample's test, but others say she jeopardized student safety by acting as if it was a real emergency.
The task force will not address the incident, Hample said. "None of us want to relive that," she said.
Instead, the group will study blue-light phones, police escorts and the use of technology to enhance safety, among other issues.
Additionally, a consultant will review police operations, staffing levels, equipment and training. It's unclear how much UMW will pay the consultant.
Hurley said UMW plans to pay other experts for their assistance, including someone with a background in what he called "community policing."
Hample said she wants to create an environment where students feel the police are an "active part" of their community.
"It really is to make sure that we have in place everything possible to have a safe and secure campus," she said.
Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402
Email: jbranscome@freelancestar.com