DPS Stresses Safety Measures On 'U' Campus After Sexual Assault, Robbery
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The Department of Public Safety at the University of Minnesota is working hard to keep campus safe for students, faculty and staff.
University Police are partnering with Minneapolis, St. Paul and Metro Transit police departments, as well as Hennepin and Ramsey County Sheriff departments, to help patrol both campuses. Campus police hope an informed campus can keep crime at bay.
"We just want them to be safe walking about whether its day or nighttime," said University of Minnesota Police Chief Matt Clark.
Clark says the start of a new year is time to remind students how they can keep themselves safe on campus.
"The university campus is very safe," he said. "Statistically, we are less than 1 percent of any of the crime that happens in Minneapolis, even though we have a population of over 80,000 people."
Clark says the campuses infrastructure helps deter crime. Cameras, card readers, security and police officers all help make campus safe.
Students say the security measures help them focus on academics and not worry too much about crime.
"I feel like there is a lot of security, and if you don't feel safe, call them and they will walk you back to where you live, or to another building," junior Madison Schmidt said.
The Department of Public Safety also posts warnings on its website, letting students know where and when crimes happen.
"It also keeps them informed on our daily log of what's going on, in terms of crime on campus, and luckily it's very low," Chief Clark said. "A lot of times, it has to do with thefts."
The latest warnings were sent out Friday, when a female student was sexually assaulted. Two days later, a student was robbed at gunpoint, near 11th Avenue and Fifth Street Southeast.
"Just beware of your surroundings, because you may feel safe but you should be prepared anywhere you are, even if you are not on campus," Schmidt said.
Upperclassmen Madison Schmidt and her friend Ingrid Carroll say they tell younger students to put the phones down when walking on campus, especially at night.
Both the University of Minnesota Police Department and Minneapolis Police are looking into the latest crimes on campus.
