UHCL PD’s relocation raises concerns of response time, campus presence

The UHCL Police Department (UHCL PD) moved its office across the street from the Bayou Building during the summer to accommodate the police department’s staff and utilities. Previously, UHCL PD’s office was located in the room underneath the Bayou Theater. Although this move is seen as a necessity by the university to facilitate the police department’s growth, it has brought about mixed reviews.

“We have received some concerns that people in the Bayou Building are not safe anymore,” said Allen Hill, chief of police. “Whether we are located in the Bayou Building or any other building on campus, our response protocols will remain the same. The fact is that police officers were rarely inside of the old facility, they were out patrolling the streets on campus and walking through all buildings on campus.”

For prospective students and their families, questions about campus safety are important.

“While it is our goal to do everything we can to keep you safe, don’t forget that your safety is in your hands,” Hill said. “Take advantage of our C.R.A.S.E (Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events), as well as our R.A.D. (Rape Aggression Defense) course, and any other free courses offered by your local law enforcement agencies.”

Writing down and remembering where to find the UHCL Police Department’s information, such as their phone number (281-283-2222), emergency alert system and website, will help the police department in better protecting an educated UHCL community. Having this information readily at hand would prove valuable to students such as Joe Riley, communication major, who sees the recent move of the police department as understandable but he is not a big fan.

“They are a little further out and if something were to happen here on campus it might take them longer to respond,” Riley said.

Whereas Angie Montelongo, director of orientation and new student programs, sees the move as a minimal concern.

“For new students who don’t know that they used to be housed in Bayou Building it really is not a big deal,” Montelongo said. “If I need to access them I know where they are and I can still get there relatively quickly. I think that on a larger campus we would have seen that type of distance between the buildings and police department anyways, I think it’s just a change because we were so use to having them close by. I do still see officers on ground… so I still feel like their visible, relatively.”

For prospective students and their parents, safety is a common question asked during orientation sessions.

“A lot of the questions we get are about accessibility and visibility for those officers, and knowing that they are in fact officers and not security guards,” Montelongo said.

These questions are answered directly by the UHCL police during orientation.

“There is an officer who would answer those questions,” Montelongo said. “When they mention the services that they provide the follow ups are the initial, ‘Who are you, what is your department like, how many officers?’ So, it’s the police department providing information directly not really our office.”

Niche.com, an analytical research company that provides information, rankings and reviews on schools of all levels within the United States, has UHCL ranked 9th on their 2019 Safest College Campuses in Texas.

“From personal experience, the most common crimes on campus are non-violent theft crimes, and cars being damaged in the parking lot without leaving contact information,” Hill said. “We publish monthly crime logs, which we send via email, and a record of current and past crime logs. Our dispatchers and Emergency Management personnel have the ability to electronically lock down every building on campus, and send notifications in real time through the Emergency Notification System (Everbridge). Our average response time on campus to emergency calls is less than 2 minutes.”

The residence hall, scheduled to open fall 2019, will provide students with a 294-bed residence hall that can accommodate about 280 students leasing one-to-four-bedroom apartments. The UHCL PD plans to provide the future residence hall inhabitants the same preparation and visibility by police as they do the other buildings.

“Students living in the residence hall, opening next Fall, will received the same level of police service that is being provided now,” Hill said. “The PD will be engaged with students in the residence hall addressing concerns, providing training classes as well as ongoing interactions with RA’s and the director of the resident hall.”

Hill said the UHCL police look forward to interacting with students and the campus community.

“This is the best way to have discussions regarding safety concerns and the best way to address those concerns,” Hill said. “Some of the ways we do this is through our coffee with a cop events around campus, and during our annual National Night Out event that we host.”