Certain aspects of the infrastructure of Trinity College need improvment

This past weekend, someone was sexually assaulted on Vernon Street as I am sure we all know. However, Campus Safety’s response to the incident was lackluster, leading one to wonder why they could not have acted more decisively. That something so horrific could occur on Vernon Street illustrates the inefficiencies that our infrastructure suffers from. Campus Safety’s headquarters are even located on Vernon Street, and they surely possess the means to prevent something like this from occurring at all. Campus Safety has duties, which must be heavily enforced if anything of significance is to be accomplished in order to make our campus a safe haven for students and visitors alike. Students should not need to keep their guard when walking back to their dorm on a Saturday night or when they are leaving the library relatively late at night. Campus Safety should be there to protect them at all costs. Currently, my friend, Chris Gardner, who is also serving as a Senator this year, has been drafting a bill, outlining some of these issues. I wanted to speak out on behalf of this bill, since it addresses many of the major inadequacies, and how they should be rectified. As he has said, Campus Safety must act most decisively when alerted about sexual assaults. The next most serious crime Campus Safety should prevent is theft. Many other forms of crime follow. I believe this bill will help to reinforce the duties relegated to Campus Safety. Even though the bill primarily outlines the responsibilities that have already been given, Chris Gardner’s efforts should surely help them be more readily recognized and abided by. On another note, the infrastructure of our campus could also be improved if Building and Grounds became more proactive. Many incidents that B & G would be required to respond to are likely to occur on the weekend or late on a Thursday or Friday night. However, B & G is off-duty at these times. I can attest to the annoyance of such an inconvenience. In the early part of last semester, the door to my room broke when we were having some people over. The incident occurred on a Friday night, which required us to live in an open dorm until the middle of the following week when Buildings and Grounds finally decided to come fix our door. I would be happy to write a bill, proposing that Buildings and Grounds have at least one or two people on call at all hours of the day during the semester, so that such occurrences can be attended to promptly. Buildings and Grounds is also slow in responding to issues when they are on-duty as well. Sometimes, one may have to call them five times over the course of a week before they send someone to fix the problem. At the beginning of this semester, the magnetic lock in the fire exit between my room and the room next door was broken. This essentially meant that I had seven roommates instead of three, a scenario I was particularly uncomfortable with, since I had no feeling of privacy. It took B & G nearly two weeks to send someone to fix the lock in the door. Even so, it should be the responsibility of B & G to send someone instantly when they are notified about a problem. There is no excuse for such delays on their part. I hope that with decisive action and cooperation, the Student Government Association can work to rectify these issues. -Remy Renault