The Campus Police department began to re-evaluate the safety and security measures at the University after a Student Government-led Night Walk March 29.

As part of the Night Walk, students and faculty probed potentially unsafe areas around campus.

Tom Younce, director of Campus Police, said the Night Walk is a long-running tradition designed to identify locations on campus that are identifiable as areas for concern.

“There is a lot of follow-up with these Night Walks,” he said. “We review everything. Night Walk helps identify areas that need additional lighting. [It] is a valuable tool in identifying locations that are cause for concern.”

Tom Stafford, the vice chancellor for student affairs, said administrators do their best to ensure the safety of students on campus.

“Everybody should be responsible for safety — every person who works on campus, all of the administrators in Student Affairs and residence halls,” he said. “Safety is really everybody’s responsibility.”

Stafford said it’s important for University administrators to be proactive in preventing crimes on campus.

According to Younce, to continue to ensure safety on campus, Campus Police uses a computer system that highlights in color locations on campus where incidents occur.

“We’ve got a sophisticated computer software package that gives information in color,” Younce said. “We continuously evaluate things. For instance if there were armed robberies or attempted armed robberies, our computer software will help us look at where trends develop.”

Rodriguez Primus, a sophomore in psychology, said Campus Police ‘s activity and the lighting of facilities on campus have improved over time.

“There have been great innovations to campus security,” he said. “Last year, there were a lot of places on campus that were unlit. I feel more secure because I see Campus Police…a lot more often than last year.”

Younce said Campus Police deploys officers where there is a cause for concern.

“It’s very important for people to call if they see something very suspicious,” he said. “Our patrol areas are much smaller in areas where people congregate, where business is generated.”

According to Younce, Campus Police has a mounted unit with horses or bicycles to patrol areas.

Natalie Bunch, a freshman in landscape architecture, said she generally feels safe on campus even after it becomes dark.

“I’ve felt safe up until recently because I’ve had to walk home to Sullivan [Drive] from studio and so, now my friends have insisted to drive me back,” she said. “There should be more lighting.”

Bunch said she thinks there should be an effective night bus.

“I walk with a purpose like I’m going somewhere,” she said. “I dress appropriately and I take lighted routes.”

Isaac Owolabi, a sophomore in aerospace engineering, said he wishes he saw more use for Campus Police late at night.

“I don’t really see them that much,” he said. “I live on East Campus, [and] I see them sometimes around the library, but not that often. I walk to the library late at night. I’m not really afraid of anybody because I lift weights and I practice self defense on my roommate.”

According to Younce, dark areas on campus are not the problem areas.

“If you look at thefts, car break-ins, armed robberies and attempted armed robberies, they often occur in well-lit areas, residence halls, parking lots, the library. Crime statistics tell us that a student off campus is six times more likely to be assaulted than when on campus.”

Younce said more males than females are assaulted, according to crime statistics.

Ashok Kannan, a freshman in biomedical engineering, said while he does feel safe on campus, he feels very unsafe while off campus. Kannan explained that he was once denied an immediate escort while out late with two other students off campus.

“On campus, I feel pretty safe at night,” he said. “Mentally, Campus Police do help you. When it actually comes down to it, I can’t trust them. They do help, but at the same time, I don’t trust them and there could be more lighting on campus.”

According to Younce, if more people called Campus Police when suspicious activity occurs, more officers would be deployed to problem areas.

“Everyone’s got their own blue light. They’ve got their cell phones, [and] 911 calls come directly to Campus Police through Raleigh,” he said.

According to Stafford, it is partially students’s responsibility to think about their safety and they should take precautions like making sure their doors are locked and walking in well-lit areas.