Ask a cop

By:

Posted: 5/13/09

Question:
"I was wondering, what do university police officers do during the summer when there are no students living here?"

Answer:
First and foremost on most of our officers' calendars during the summer is taking vacation time. We don't allow much time off during the regular school year, so as you can imagine, they need a little down time!

On the business side of things, there is still plenty to do. There are always people around. This includes camps, visitors, staff and faculty. The physical security of the campus still needs to be assured, buildings locked, lots patrolled.

We also seek out as many training opportunities as we can. It is easier to schedule officers for training purposes when the main student body isn't here. Officers participate in everything from firearms training to new communications techniques.

We evaluate, update and reinvent many of our programming items. This includes our student, staff and faculty presentations, our General Orders, policies and philosophies as needed.

The lower call volume in the summer allows us more time to look toward internal needs and necessary changes than we can during the busy school year. It's a time to sit back, take a deep breath and get ready for next year!

- Chief Kiederlen