You may have never had the pleasure of walking from Frederiksen Court to the Memorial Union at 5:30 a.m. to get to work on time, but because the buses are not awake yet, I have. Had I been aware of the Safety Escort program offered by the ISU Department of Public Safety, I might have saved myself some anxiety and an extra hour of sleep. Although continuing to grow in popularity, this program and other key aspects of the DPS are looking at the threat of being cut due to budget issues.

While many equate the campus security’s abilities with those of a rent-a-cop, the inner workings and all that is offered generally remain unknown to the public. Despite efforts to promote and expand knowledge of the department, due to lack of funds — and consequently, lack of man-power — it has been relatively unsuccessful.

While making that early morning trek across campus alone, I realized that I knew nothing of the campus’ safety policies or what strategies were actually in place to protect the community. At the time, I had very low expectations for this particular department and was quite leery of its capabilities of protecting me; to put my worries to rest I had to find out more.

The negative opinions of the DPS seem to come from the fact that people are unaware of all the aspects encompassed by the department.

All incoming students are presented with an overview of the services provided by the university during orientation sessions and at Destination Iowa State, but the problem with this is that students are being bombarded with pamphlets and documents from all other university departments and organizations, and it is unlikely that they will carefully read through all of the material. Taking this into account, the DPS trains the Department of Residence staff and Cyclone Aides regarding safety services offered in hopes of disseminating the information to as many people as possible.

To my surprise, the Department of Public Safety is responsible for much more than just patrolling football games and handing out parking tickets. Its target is the ISU community, and they make sure to include them in their efforts as much as possible.

The department conducts annual campus safety walks with the GSB to take note of any lighting and environmental hazards and then reports them to Facilities Planning and Management to be taken care of. With proper financial support and increased employment, these safety walks could take place more often, eliminating gaps where accidents could occur. The DPS also runs an eight-week Citizen Police Academy for students, faculty and staff to experience what it is like to work with the department as well as learn how to deal with issues such as domestic violence. Throughout the year, they arrange crime prevention sessions.

But to come back to the beginning of this letter, the most popular program run by the DPS is the Safety Escort program.

Upon calling the appropriate telephone number, either a walking or vehicle-assisted escort is provided to anyone on campus free of charge.

The number of people using the service has significantly increased (from 1,832 people in 2006 to 4,144 in 2009) and its growing popularity is most likely due to word of mouth.

Some have been unhappy that the service only operates on campus and in the greek area, however this is a restriction made by the City of Ames due to the fact that there are other cab services whose business may suffer if the Safety Escort program were allowed outside of campus boundaries. Along with this program, the DPS offers a Motorist Assist Program which includes jump starts, tire airing/changing equipment and escorts to fueling stations — all free of charge.

And yet all of these services are only a fraction of what the department has to offer. When considering the DPS in its entirety, it is difficult to imagine how it will be able to continue efficiently operating while its staff slowly dwindles because of inadequate funding.

The DPS’s biggest problem now is finding ways to finance all of the programs offered in the coming years. With only 33 sworn, state-certified police officers and eight full-time civilian staff, the department is already understaffed, considering how many people they are responsible for.

It employs about 70 students in various areas, and part-time students are also employed to work with building security, safety escorts and dispatch.

The department is focused on increasing security where needed, but improvements will be difficult to make when they might be forced to cut back in some areas.

Perhaps the university could curtail its spending, maybe rethink spending $6 million on new busses.

Fundraising is also an option that would benefit the department both financially and promotionally.

Regardless of how they come across the money, an increase in the DPS’s funding will improve not only the department but our entire community, which is ultimately the main concern.

Amanda Paul is a sophomore in marketing.