Introduction
Campus Safety's role in the Calvin community

Office of Campus Safety
Staff, patrolling, reporting crimes or suspicions, information campaigns, emergency phones

Security in Campus Residences

The Student's Responsibility

Introduction

Calvin College enrolls over 4,300 undergraduate and graduate students. Approximately 2,300 students reside in seven residence halls and eight apartment style buildings. (In addition there are five apartment buildings housing seminary students and their families.)

The college employs over 500 full and part time faculty and staff. The college does not currently request information from employee or student applicants concerning involvement in criminal offenses except for those applying for campus safety positions.

Students, faculty, and staff at Calvin College have access to academic, recreational, and administrative facilities on campus. Access to the residence halls, however, is limited to students and their guests, according to college housing procedures (see Campus Safety in Campus Residences). Access to the residence halls by college employees is on an "as-needed" basis and incorporates a strict access control procedure. The general public can attend cultural and recreational events on campus, with their access limited only to the facilities in which the events are held.

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Office of Campus Safety

The Campus Safety Office coordinates all safety operations on campus. The Campus Safety Department consists of a director, an associate director for technical services, an operations manager, four patrol supervisors, office staff, and 32 part-time student dispatchers and patrol officers. Student patrol officers receive training in basic safety officer procedures, emergency medical procedures, and CPR. Campus safety patrol officers are not armed. They conduct foot and vehicular patrols of the campus and residence hall areas 24 hours a day. In addition an escort service is provided in the evening and night time hours. Campus safety patrol officers enforce all college rules and regulations. Local police are called in for any arrest relating to violations of city or state laws. The Campus Safety Office maintains a working relationship with local, county, and state police agencies. A reasonable attempt is made to be aware of any crimes occurring in the area of the campus that would pose a threat to the college community.

Campus safety as well as the residence life staff enforce the campus wide ban on possession and use of alcohol and illegal drugs. Possession of dangerous weapons or firearms anywhere on campus, including the residence halls, is a violation of the Student Conduct Code.

Potential criminal actions and other campus emergencies can be reported directly by any student or staff member to the college safety office by dialing campus extension 66452. You will be connected to the Campus Safety Dispatcher. Upon receipt of a call, a campus safety officer will be dispatched immediately to the site of the complaint and will make a formal report and/or contact local police if necessary. Notification to the college community of crimes reported to campus safety that are considered a potential threat will be made on a timely basis. This will allow the college community to take steps to prevent similar occurrences of this crime.

As part of the programs sponsored by the residence life staff and other offices in the Student Life division, sessions are offered to students on such topics as personal safety awareness and security, rape prevention, and the prevention of burglary and vandalism. Information on safety and security is provided regularly to students and employees through seminars, films, bulletins, crime alerts, posters, brochures, and campus media.

The physical plant department maintains the college buildings and grounds with a concern for safety and security. It inspects campus facilities regularly and makes prompt repairs affecting safety and security, It also promptly responds to reports of potential safety and security hazards, such as broken windows and locks.

The populated areas of the college campus are well lighted. Further lighting improvements are being made, including increasing the light levels in parking lots, along pathways frequently traveled by students, and along roadways. In addition to a phone in each student suite, there are phones located in all residence hall lobbies, and in each building to facilitate calling for assistance. Blue emergency phones are located in the perimeter student vehicle storage lots and at various locations around campus.

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Security in Campus Residences

Calvin College has two primary housing options for students: traditional residence halls for freshmen and sophomores, and two bedroom apartments for juniors and seniors. Each residence hall complex has one hall for men students and one hall for women students. A professional resident director lives in an apartment adjacent to the main lobby, and each floor is staffed by a trained student resident assistant. Freshmen and sophomores who do not live at home are required to live on campus. Upper class students are housed in one of eight apartment buildings located on the east side of the East Beltline. Each apartment houses five students and each building is staffed by a student resident assistant and a professional live-in resident director. A part time professional community coordinator lives in the apartment complex, and a Resident Director supervises the entire complex.

In the residence halls, a desk receptionist is on duty from 12 noon until 1 AM Sunday through Thursday and from 12 noon until 3 am Friday and Saturday. This receptionist is trained to alert campus safety if necessary. The residence life staff is trained to also respond to security concerns. The side and rear doors in the residence halls are locked 24 hours a day and alarms are activated at midnight. The entrance door to each hall is locked 24 hours a day and students need to use their ID card to access this door. In addition, students are advised to keep their room doors locked whenever they are not present in the room and throughout the night. From 5 pm to 8 am, campus safety officers patrol the residence hall area and make regular walks through the basements of the residence halls.

In the apartment complex, all of the entrance doors are locked 24 hours a day. Students access their apartment building using their ID card. In addition, students are advised to lock their apartment doors whenever they are not present in the apartment and throughout the night. Apartment doors are equipped with dead bolt locks and with peepholes for viewing the hallway. Dowels are provided for the sliding glass door in the living room area and these doors are also equipped with locks. Guests may use a phone intercom to announce their arrival and residents can grant access to the building entrance door using phone technology.

The college does not provide supervision for off campus housing. It does, however, distribute a safety booklet each year to all off-campus students which outlines important information on crime prevention.

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The Student's Responsibility

The cooperation and involvement of students themselves in a campus safety program is absolutely essential. Students must assume responsibility for their own personal safety and the security of their belongings by taking simple, common sense precautions. For example, although the campus is well-lighted, a student may feel more comfortable using the campus safety escort service when returning to a campus residence late at night. Room doors should be locked at night and when the room is unoccupied. Valuable items such as stereos, audio equipment, cameras, and televisions should be marked with engraving instruments provided by the campus safety office at no charge. Bicycles must be registered with the City of Grand Rapids and should be secured with a sturdy lock. Students with cars must park them in their assigned area and keep their vehicles locked at all times. Valuables should not be left in plain sight in a vehicle. Remove any valuables from your vehicle or secure them in the trunk. Students should report any suspicious looking individuals whom they feel do not belong in their residence halls or any unusual incidents in and around the residence halls to the residence life staff or to the campus safety office.

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