Syracuse University’s Graduate Student Organization, Student Association and Department of Public Safety installed 50 safety resource signs last week at off-campus locations frequented by students.

The installation capped months of talks about off-campus safety by the three organizations. Each sign features contact information for the Syracuse Police Department, Syracuse University Ambulance and DPS. The LiveSafe app, SU’s mobile safety alert system and community policing tool, is also promoted on the signs.

Obi Afriyie, the GSO Senator sponsoring the initiative, said he once saw an intoxicated student swaying back and forth near Lyons Hall. He said he thought the student could have called for help if they knew who to contact.

Graduate students tend to live further off campus, making safety a priority of the organization, Afriyie added.

Undergraduates frequent these areas as well, said Alex Keegan, the SA member working on the initiative. He added that if these signs could help one person be safer off-campus, the initiative would be a success.

The initiative costs $4,125. GSO and SA each contributed $1,450 dollars, and DPS gave the remaining $1,225.

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Jim French, superintendent of traffic services for the city, helped expedite the signs because they were placed on existing city-owned poles, Afriyie said. SA, GSO and DPS also printed out emergency contact information cards to distribute to students.

Afriyie’s original idea was to expand the blue light system on Euclid Avenue, said Robert Maldonado, chief of DPS. But he said informing students of the resources they already have would be a better route.

“I think there is some ambiguity amongst our students about who to contact in an off-campus capacity,” Maldonado said.

DPS will respond to any call they recieve, but it does not have jurisdiction in off-campus neighborhoods, he said.

Paul Smyth, manager of Emergency Medical Services at SU, said that if Syracuse University Ambulances is out of service, the call will roll over to DPS. This typically happens on breaks when student workers leave campus, he said.

SUA may respond to 911 calls if dispatchers feel the call might be coming from a student at SU, Smyth said.

Afriyie said he hopes to expand the signs to areas like Nob Hill or closer to Genesee Street in the coming semesters.

“This is just the start,” he said.

Published on January 29, 2019 at 10:21 pm

Contact Patrick: pjlineha@syr.edu