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WKU Campus Safety Task Force July 30, 2003 The Campus Safety Task Force, which was commissioned in May as an independent advisory group, issued recommendations on general safety, housing and residence life, campus police and fire safety and emergency response. "We had a very diverse group of folks in the task force," Chair Mike Littell of Louisville said. "We had alumni, parents, staff and students, which are all very important cogs to university life." Littell, who is also chair of the Parents Advisory Council and whose daughter is a student at Western, said the task force was autonomous. "We dreamt up our own processes. We pushed them through to a completed product," he said. "We did that thanks to having information brought to us as quickly as we did ask for it." Littell said the task force had "high compliments as to what is on paper and what is already in place as it relates to safety and security." WKU President Gary Ransdell said the members of the task force "devoted an incredible amount of time, energy and intellectual strength to this process. The work of this task force has brought about constructive improvements and quality of life enhancements on this campus. It's our intention to implement all of the recommendations that have been forwarded to us." Dr. Ransdell said some recommendations will require a financial commitment that may take some time, "but we do intend to address every recommendation included in the report." One recommendation—the creation of standing safety advisory committee—will be implemented immediately, Dr. Ransdell said. Others, such as requiring freshmen to live in same-gender halls, will take a year to put into place. Littell said these recommendations "will spawn other notions when you get a little more expertise involved." The entire report and recommendations can be found at www.wku.edu/safety.html. Littell said there is a balance of responsibility between the university and the students. "There are a few things that we recommended that might tighten up some of the hard and fast rules, but there are some things on the student side that we can bring to light. It's important in both directions," he said. While the committee looked at policies from other schools, there were no perfect solutions. "We're going to be forging some new ground and becoming the benchmark or the template that other institutions might be able to grasp," he said. Dr. Ransdell said it was important to involve parents with the task force. "I had great confidence in our parents to look at this objectively and act in the best interest of their sons and daughters and all of our sons and daughters who are enrolled at this university," he said. "This was not something that was casually appointed." He added: "This is about as secure an environment as one could have for the population that we serve." More WKU news is available on the World Wide Web at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
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