During the fall semester, there was an uptick of theft and violent crime incidents at University of Indianapolis. That prompted campus officials to complete a comprehensive public safety study.
The crimes included an armed robbery, burglary, two attempted robberies, five cases of theft and two shootings, including a fatal shooting Oct. 19 and another shooting Nov. 10 a half-mile from campus.
Also in November, college officials hired Troy Riggs, a former police chief of Indianapolis and Corpus Christi, Texas, as a public safety consultant. From November to January, Riggs put together a review of public safety at the university and short and long-term goals that can be met within a $500,000 budget the college set aside for improving communication with students and making campus more secure.
The incidents, in combination with students returning to learning in-person, caused the university to take a serious look at public safety, said Robert Manuel, the college’s president.
“Any urban institution and organization in an urban setting is always monitoring public safety,” he said. “We had an increase in incidents in the fall term, as is possible with an organization in an urban setting, and in welcoming everyone back after years of COVID isolation, the time was right to think about our approach to public safety and emergency management communication. After incidents, including the one with George Floyd and others, we wanted to create an inclusive public safety approach.”
The university’s study included members of its administration, the president’s cabinet and university planning commission, student groups, such as the student leadership advisory board and student athlete advising committee, and campus groups, including residence life and the alumni board. The study also included off-campus groups, such as the city of Indianapolis, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and the South Indy Qualify of Life Plan, according to the study.
The conversations revealed students and staff members wanted more meaningful connections with the campus community and more input in public safety management. The study also revealed students were concerned about Indianapolis’ rising crime rate and wanted regular communication regarding incidents on campus, along with more measures put in place to prevent crime.
Community members wanted to see the university take the lead in developing a public safety strategy, and members of the Burmese community wanted greater connection with the college when it comes to community programming, according to the study.
Since November, the university added a 24-hour dedicated phone line called “Grady’s Safety Walk,” which students, faculty and staff members can call for an escort across campus. The study also led to more lighting around campus and 57 additional security cameras, increasing the tally to 94, according to the study.
The university added two more police officers and will soon hire a director of public safety, he said.
“We have our sworn officer force engaging in educational opportunities with students and faculty so they’re seen as resources to them whether in the immediate moment they’re needed for safety but also as educational forces for them in the setting they find themselves in,” Manuel said. “I’ve seen physical changes, there’s been a change in vehicular traffic patterns and the city has invested in new crosswalk lane patterns. There are officer-student interactions and self-defense classes. There’s the Grady Safety Walk. There are tons of ways officers are enacting engagement with students on campus.”
More than 200 university members have taken part in self-defense classes, according to the study.
Though the study has concluded, university officials will continue to look for ways to improve campus life and safety, Manuel said.
“I think the general message continues to be, like everything at the university, we continue to constantly monitor and improve our operations, consistent with the changes that happen around us. We include all the stakeholders and members of the community to ensure they’re involved in the process,” Manuel said. “Public safety, academics, community life, all those pieces are constantly examined and put in strategy for what our (campus) life will be. What we want is continued input moving forward.”
The University of Indianapolis safety study can be found uindy.edu/public-safety/.
