Disclaimer: These meetings are designed to be a safe space for students to talk about their feelings and experiences. In the spirit of respect and sensitivity, it is important to uphold these guidelines. Student names, details, and personal stories will not be disclosed in this article. These observations reflect the opinion of a group of students, not the whole Skidmore Community.
In the last year, the United States has begun to confront its connected past with racism and racial inequity. College students have been some of the most outspoken voices, with many from all over the country bringing their experiences with racial bias and prejudice to the fore. Many Skidmore College students have followed suit, but the College as an institution has a long way to go before it is considered “outspoken” in issues of racial justice.
A central point of contention on campus has been the Skidmore Campus Safety Department and instances of racial prejudice. In light of many concerns from community members, Skidmore’s Campus Safety Advisory Committee (CSAC) recently contracted with Margolis Healy, a national campus safety and security consulting firm. This partnership is part of President Conner’s Racial Justice Initiative and the College’s efforts to conduct an external assessment on Campus Safety.
Margolis Healy hosted two student forums last week, on Monday, February 22, and Thursday, February 25. The purpose of these meetings was to hear about student experiences concerning campus safety and racial bias. The firm has also been interviewing students on campus for the past two weeks and collecting more data. The conversations were led by external consultants from the firm, Christi Hurt and Dr. D.A. Graham. No members of Campus Safety or other College staff were present.
After analyzing the data collected, the firm will write a comprehensive report with their findings and recommendations and present it to the college administration.
What were the current perceptions of safety and security at Skidmore? It was stressed that Skidmore Campus Safety is not a police department and does not carry weapons. Its job is to provide 24/7 non-urgent medical health care, transportation, and safety escorts around campus. Campus Safety most often encounters students because other students have requested they do so.
However, students voiced that Campus Safety’s response to non-threatening mental health situations is not optimal, as seen multiple times this academic year. They have tried to offer mental health advice that students do not find helpful. Students also reported that responding to situations that require compassion is difficult for the department. In addition, there have been many instances of misgendering students and not understanding identification pronouns.
The consultants disclosed that campus police must complete Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training. There was only a general awareness of this fact on campus, and many students do not have a clear picture of the type of DEI training used.
“Can you tell by their behavior that they have done this kind of training?”
“No,” students responded.
It was expressed that many students do not feel safe calling Campus Safety for help when alcohol and drugs are involved. They are often written up for misconduct, even if the one calling for help is not intoxicated. They attest that officers are not respectful of students who are intoxicated, which often deters people from calling for help.
Furthermore, there is a concern about the hiring requirements for Campus Safety Police. Students feel that the College prefers applicants who have prior training as a police officer, yet it is unknown where this is true. It is scary to know that there are ex-police officers on campus, students say, especially when the wariness of police brutality is heightened.
It was also brought up that Campus Safety does not respond well to COVID-19 violations, especially when white students are involved. Students reported instances of Skidmore’s Lacrosse team hosting multiple parties during campus lockdown. When officers were called, they could not help, stating that nothing could be done because the party was off-campus. While Campus Safety’s jurisdiction is not beyond campus grounds, it is essential to consider the resulting case count from these parties and students’ safety on campus.
Students felt that it is known around campus that there is disparate treatment of students of color by Campus Safety. One student stressed that white students, however, might not be aware of this because they, as a group, might not have had as many bad encounters with an officer.
What were the perceived strengths of Campus Safety and the Skidmore community? The opinions were mixed. There was a consensus that Campus Safety helps take students to the hospital in case of emergency. In terms of the community, some students feel that their peers are as helpful and kind as ever. Others felt that kindness has an expiry date. Before last semester, students looked out for other students. There was an understanding that if you needed help, people would offer their help. Now, during COVID-19, students say, others have shown a lack of care and selfishness not previously seen.
If students could wave a magic wand to create the ideal set of safety support services, what would they create? The answers were relatively simple. Some felt that defunding Campus Safety and using the money towards racial equality initiatives, or clubs would be helpful. Others recommended hiring more social workers or human service professionals to deal with mental health crises instead.
In general, the majority agreed that transparency right now is low. There needs to be greater transparency by the Skidmore Administration on who is hired to deal with these issues, on the DEI training campus officers receive, and on future plans for Campus Safety.