0 Page 8-The Michigan Daily-New Student Edition-University-Thursday, September 9, 1993 Expanded DPS looks over campus crime by Bryn Mickle Daily Staff Reporter They're blue and they carry guns. No, they're not smurfs with a score to settle - they are the Department of Public Safety (DPS), the University's campus police force. DPS was originally created to serve as basic campus security, but in recent years thedepartmenthasexpanded its scopeand abilities. In February 1992, the DPS un- derwent the process of deputization - to the dismay of many students. Before deputization, campus pro- tection was handled by private security finns. The decision to create a state- authorized police force transferred the responsibility of overseeing security from these private organizations to the University's Board of Regents. The 20 DPS officers who patrol the campus are police academy trained and, yes, they are authorized to carry firearms. DPS is supervised by two sworn-in Ann Arbor Police Department (AAPD) officers. Many students opposed the deputization decision and said it was unnecessary and would lead to a cam- pus police-state. "You give these guys guns and who knows what they'll do," LSA senior Josephine Trachia said."You can't prove that they are the reason crime has gone down." Lt.Vernon Baisden, directorofcom- munity relations for DPS, said there has been a decrease in reports of violent crimes and thefts. Aggravated assaults and burglaries dropped by almost a third, while first and third-degree crimi- nal assaults also experienced signifi- cant drops. ' 'The fact of the matter is that alot of neonle are workine hard to have a very Ann Arbor, the, student still faces a separate University investigation for possible violation of the Statement. DPS polices the campus in a variety of manners. The force uses vehicles, as well as foot patrols, to survey Central campus and North campus. DPS also introduced a bicycle patrol to deter crime on the Diag and on campus sidewalks. In addition to its standard policing duties, DPS serves many other func- tions. It is the duty of DPS to coordinate the Safe Walk program - a service that aids those who do not want to walk alone at night, both on central and North campus. The department also provides etching tools for student bicycles and other possessions, teaches crime pre- vention and education programs and coordinates security for high-profile campus visits (most recently that of Hillary Clinton). An often-overlooked facet of DPS is the emergency phone system. There are 62 of these blue-capped phones distrib- uted throughout the University campus. Individuals in need of DPS assistance must only lift the receiver of the phone and automatically the caller's location will be transmitted to the DPS command center, and an officer is dispatched to the site. There are a few misconceptions about the authority and duties of DPS officers. DPS officers are authorized to patrol buildings, but the majority of night-watch duties are handled by pri- vate security firms. These non-Univer- sity guards do not carry firearms. DPS officers are allowed to hand out moving violations to students and non-students alike. Because they are deputized by the state, DPS patrols can follow traffic violators off of University erounds and issue the Droner citations. The move to deputize DPS offic- ers has not resulted in the widespread slaughter of students. In the one year since the Pegents voted for an armed campus security force, DPS officers have never fired their weapons. The knowledge that DPS is a state of Michigan deputized police force is vital for any student planning on participat- ing in illegal activities on campus - such as Hash Bash or the Annual Ann Arbor Riot. If a student is arrested by the AAPDforsmoking an illegal substance, the crime falls under city laws-a$100 fine. If that same student is arrested by DPS, the unlucky youth facesa$10,000 fine and possible jail time - the state- mandated penalties. 'The fact of the matfer is that a lot of people are working hard to have a very safe force and that is why there has been less crime on campus.' Lt. Vernon Baisden DPS community relations If the riotismore yourspeed, consider this scenario. AstudentchargedbyDPS in the assault of a fellow student faces pos- sible Statementcharges, whereas the same student caught by AAPD does not run the immediate risk of being tossed out of school - just prosecution to the fullest extent of the law. The moral: if an arrest is imminent, then run - don't walk - to the nearest AAPD officer. 0 MARY NuuKrABwuaily DPS officers patrol atop stylish mountain bikes. DPS was deputized in February 1992 and officers carry firearms. safe force and that is why there has been less crime on campus," Baisden said. The duty of DPS is to enforce the University's Statementof Student Rights and Resnonsibilities and camnus laws. Reports of all DPS involved incidents are forwarded to the University's Vice President for Student Affairs, as well as the AAPD. As a result, any student accused of breaking the law faces oros- ecution from two separates entities. The Ann Arbor prosecutor investi- gates the case and then decides if the city go further. Even if a student is cleared of wronedoine by the city of CP&P office helps with key professor recommendations by Jesse Brouhard Daily Staff Reporter Career Planning and Placement? I don't ever want a Career involving work, I can barely Plan dinner for this evening and the Placement on my fastball has always been lousy. What does Career Planning and Placement (CP&P) have to do with me at such a tender age? Ifyouarepre-med,pre-law,pre-professionalorjustplainpre- pre-pre-real life, then a visit to career planning and placement might be a good idea for you sooner rather than later. The CP&P office is located on the third floor of the Student Activities Building. The office provides information and advice for a variety of subjects including obtaining recommendation letters, contacting employers in your field of interest and finding summer internships. The first logical step for most students in their academic lifetime at the U of M is opening a file in the CP&P office. This service is free for students. Opening a file simply means that the CP&P staff will compile all recommendations you receive into one neat file that can then be sent out to perspective parties wishing to hire or admit you (Medical, Law and Graduate schools, as well as employers come to mind). The more personal contact you have with your professor the better the recommendation will probably be. Originality in the professor's letter appears better to potential evaluators down the line. "I attended a conference that my professor hosted and prepared a summary for him while I was in his class," LSA Junior Rajiv Shah said. "In addition, I had the opportunity to meet personally with him on a weekly basis throughout the course of the term." This is the preferred method for acquir- ing recommendations. Sometimes, however, it is impossible to be in close contact with professors at a large University such as Michi- gan. What to do then? An alternate way to get a recommendation if you prefer taking large lecture classes is to get to know your teaching assistant (T.A.) well. The professor can then reference your T.A. as to what kind of student you are and then use that information to help write a recommendation. In addition, often a brief profile of yourself is useful in aiding the professor to get to know you and should increase the personal feeling of the letter. "I didn't really know my professor that well since it was a 500-person lecture, but I did well in the course," LSA junior Karl Stien said. "He asked for a profile letter and then wrote me a recommendation." Don't be overly concerned about all of the semantics, however. For the most part, professors are very willing to write recommendations for all their bright young pupils. Be wary, though. No matter how well-intentionedprofes- sors may be, they can fit the forgetful stereotype you heard. Always go to CP&P to make sure yourrecommendations reach your file. Once all of your sterling letters have accumulated at CP&P, all that is left to do is to decide upon a destination for your file. Mine will be going to Harvard Law, Johns. Hopkins Medical School and the London School of Economics if you would like to use any of the recs as a reference. N -9 Campus Information Center workers know all there is to know by Jesse Brouhard Daily Staff Reporterm I'd like directions to Zingerman's, the phone number for the East Engineering maintenance department and four tickets for the Allman Brothers July concert. For the first two, the Campus Information Center (CIC) is definitely the place to go for concise information and help. For the third, it can't guarantee tickets but will send you in the right direction to find them. CIC was created to attempt to unravel some of the mysteries students consistently faced while trying to survive the rigors of this large university. "Pre 1981, there was no place to go on campus to ask questions or get directions," CIC Manager Dave Watters said. "It was a very different environment before CIC." In fact CIC is as close as the university comes to having a visitor center. Due to the lack of a visitor center, CIC is the main source of information for campus visitors as well as students, faculty and staff. That is not the truly amazing aspect about the CIC, though. That would be the plethora of information these student wizards seem to conjure up on the spot. This service is available 19 hours a day from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. every day except Sunday. All that is necessary is a simple call to 763-INFO. "The main thing I think is important is that we are open all the time," Watters said. "We are the only office on campus open after 5 p.m. People should think of us as a resource all of the time." At 7 a.m. when you are in desperate need of a good breakfast to cure your lack of sleep from night before, who is the person on the other end of the line telling you the Old Fashioned Soup Kitchen is a good destination? These know-it-alls are students just like yourself, just a little bit more knowledgeable about events and facts aboutAnnArbor than yourself. They didn't start out that way, though. Most CIC workers had to gradually leam the ropes and use each other to leam their wily ways about Ann Arbor and the University. "There is an application process to become employed here," Watters said. "It is helpful to have a good grounding of campus knowledge, but good interpersonal skills are more important because you learn a lot of things from scratch." All of the wonderful tidbits the student information assistants hand out pours into the CIC from a variety of sources. The largest source of information are flyers and announcements from groups on campus who are promoting. events. These promotions are then passed on by the CIC. "We try to be on as many mailing lists as possible. We rely heavily on departmental flyers and announcements for our information," Watters said. Butdon'tjustcall the CIC forreasons you feel are important. The CIC has answers to most problems, no matter how wacky. "I called them (CIC) up and asked how hot the new Taco Bell Wild Burritos were," LSA junior Sarat Ramayya said. "Luckily, they told me to avoid them or my mouth would have been really burning." CIC even saves lives. If you're a student and are looking for a new bank, look no further than First of America. We've got a full range of products and services designed to meet your needs, from our Thrifti Checking account to a variety of student loans, and more. And if you open your checking account before September 30, 1993, we'll give convenience of Ann Arbor's largest campus network with 5 branches and 10 ATMs in the campus area. We also make it simple to open your account by mail by just calling us. So call 995-7784 to open your account by mail or stop by your nearest First of America office to r.nr, cl r in. * - .saa Tntr rn o g x