Morale has degraded

After a letter to the Collegiate Times stated that "Tech doesn't want to expend finances toward improving its campus security until it is forced to," complaints about the state of Tech's campus watch and security guards' equipment have surfaced.

Campus watch members and security guards work under the Virginia Tech Police Department and are meant to complement the campus' sworn police officers.

"Campus watch is designed to be a few extra eyes and ears around the campus for the police department as an overall program, and their intent is to provide security for residence hall areas," said Deborah Morgan, lieutenant with the VTPD.

Campus watch is sponsored by residential and dining programs; however, the security guards are employed and paid by the VTPD, Morgan said. Campus watch includes the lock up guards, the building guards, and the safe ride van.

Campus watch is responsible for walking around residence halls to make sure doors aren't propped open, reporting anything that happens around that area to the police department, checking the emergency call boxes to make sure they work properly, manning some of the buildings they have on campus, and more.

"They're issued the same equipment, like radios, as the police officers," Morgan said. "Their uniforms are different because you have to differentiate between the police and the security guards."

However, Steven Miller, Blacksburg citizen and friend to some employees of campus watch, said that the program is not getting all the resources it needs.

"My beef with campus watch is they're not being supplied with the equipment that they need and the training that they need to do the job," Miller said.

Recently, Miller wrote a letter to the CT entitled "little has changed in terms of security since April."

An anonymous source from campus watch said that he is actively looking for another job because the employees are not getting the resources to do this job. He also said the he is not the only one from campus watch that is looking for another job.

The source said that some of the employees have not been given proper training such as a diffusing bad situation training programs and a safe-defense training program. He also said that some of the employees do not have flashlights, and the building guards who do perimeter checks sometimes stumble on steps because they can't see.

Morgan disputed the claim that campus watch does not have adequate equipment. She said that employees are issued jackets, pants, a waist belt, the lock-up tools they need, boots and anything else that the would need to perform their job.

However, the campus watch worker said that the uniform that the employees must wear, consisting of a short sleeve shirt and a pair of cargo pants, are getting holes and the pockets are falling off. He also said that the equipment is sometimes faulty.

"The radios aren't trustworthy," he said. "They are six, seven years old and pretty much police hand-me-down radios with NiCad-rechargeable battery packs. By the end of the shift, the batteries' charge is gone."

Because some of the radios cease to work toward the end of the shift, some employees are forced to use their personal cell phones to code-in to dispatch, or signify that things are all right on their end, he said. However, the source also mentioned that according to the police handbook, the use of personal equipment is prohibited.

"They're degrading campus watch to a feel-good existence because we don't have the training or equipment to do the job," he said. "Morale has gotten very low among campus watch because they feel, 'what good am I?' We're being treated like a feel-good measure."

Firings are questioned

The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice and Services created a plan to enhance Virginia's campus security system in August 2006; however, some associated with the security system at Virginia Tech feel that the system has not improved and that some security workers have been unfairly reprimanded.

An employee of the campus watch organization at Tech who has chosen to remain anonymous said he believes three walking security guards at Tech were unreasonably and "conveniently" fired over Thanksgiving break.

"Walkers are cheaper than sworn officers, basically the three people the student body relied on," the source said. "It was the walkers who would report (suspicious activity), but you don't have them right now because they've been fired."

All the security guards on campus work for, and are funded by, the Virginia Tech Police Department, and the walking security guards are specifically designed to protect students at night.

"The walking patrol goes around and they are kind of extra eyes and ears to the police department," said Lt. Deborah Morgan, VTPD. "They also look for any suspicious activity around (campus)."

While the VTPD refused to discuss the employment status of the individuals, a second anonymous source also alleged that three walking units, David Cox, Steve Hutchins, and Peter Montgomery were let go over the break.

While the sources believe the men were released for taking a break to get coffee at 7-11 during their late hours (10 p.m. to 6 a.m.), Morgan strongly denied the claim.

"We've never fired anyone for taking a coffee break. (Coffee breaks) have nothing to do with anything," Morgan said. "Not one bit of any of that has any truth to it."

However, Steven Miller, a concerned Blacksburg citizen who had addressed the issue of seeing "little change" with the support for Campus Watch and security guards in a Collegiate Times letter to the editor on Nov. 14, believes that the three guards were fired.

"I know of them, they have very good reputations; they were viewed as three of their best guys," Miller said. "I just think they got a real raw deal. There's just no question about it."

Miller also agreed with the reason for the guards allegedly being released, adding that he feels they aren't supplied with proper clothing to stay warm during the winter nights. He said that other members of campus watch at Tech, which include the guards who are responsible for locking the campus, the building guards, and the safe ride drivers, aren't always able to perform their job properly because of the lack of clothing.

"The building guards are supposed to walk around their post at least once a night, some of them don't do it at all," Miller said. "Some of them don't do it because they're lazy, but some of them don't do it because they're cold."

However, Morgan disputed that claim and described campus watch's supplied attire as "heavy winter parkas."

She also addressed the issue of taking breaks during their eight-hour shift by saying that it is state policy for the guards to be given one meal break that usually lasts 20 to 30 minutes.

Jared Taylor, security guard supervisor who works under Morgan, declined to comment on the situation at hand. VTPD will not discuss anything concerning the firings and say that the equipment they are providing is sufficient.

"If they didn't (feel their equipment was reliable) they should have asked and they would be replaced or taken care of … nobody did," Morgan said.

The anonymous source working for campus watch and those, like Steven Miller, who are following the security systems in Virginia, feel there is a genuine issue at hand.

"The situation of Virginia Tech security has gone from bad to worse," Miller said. "I feel like something's necessary; I feel like the administration doesn't get the message any other way. A walk-out may be the ultimate solution."

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