According to a College Prowler survey, 84 percent of Auburn University students feel safe and secure on campus, but only 15 percent say the police are "extremely present and willing to assist students."
The new Auburn police substation in the Student Center plans to change that.
"Although the Auburn campus is relatively safe in comparison with many other institutions, every incremental step we can take to improve student safety is worth it," said Ainsley Carry, vice president of Student Affairs.
Tommy Carswell, captain of the Auburn Police Department, thinks the substation will create a more visible police presence on campus than there has been in the past.
"We hope it makes people on campus feel safer by knowing that we're right there," Carswell said. "While we've always had officers on campus, no one knew exactly where they were at a given time. It moves an officer from a random location to a specific location where people know that he or she will be there."
The substation opened this summer. Auburn Police Assistant Chief Paul Register worked closely with Carry and his staff to turn this long-standing idea into reality.
"It's something we'd been dreaming of for a long time," said Carswell. "We knew that we needed to be closer to the people of Auburn--physically closer."
According to Carswell, most SEC schools have their own police department, but the Auburn Police Department is responsible for law enforcement on campus as well as throughout the city. This can cause a duplication of effort.
"Getting this office is just a way of strengthening that effort," Carswell said.
The appeal of this station is convenience. The police want students to have a central place to turn to in case of trouble on campus.
"The whole idea behind it is that we just want to be accessible and convenient for the students, faculty and staff," said Tom Stofer, captain of the Auburn Police Department.
"It's a central location people are aware of so that when they need help they know where to come to get assistance."
Students haven't begun to utilize the station like its creators were anticipating, but many still aren't aware of it.
"It hasn't been used a lot," Carswell said.
"We've yet to reach the people that we want to reach with this resource. Summer was a little slower, but thank goodness it's not every day that everybody needs a police officer. The success of it isn't measured by the number of people that come in and out of it, but by the number of people who have this access when they need it."
Brittany Kear, freshman in pre-nursing, said she ate lunch a few feet away from the station last Friday, but still didn't know it existed.
"I didn't know about it, but it's a good idea," Kear said. "In case there's an emergency, they're right here. It makes me feel safer on campus."
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