Re: Kenyon Visit Report and Dorm Security

StitchInTime · 04-07-2009, 09:14 AM

A recent visit report (see: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/...e/1641123.html) shared concerns over the dorm security system/policy.

There appears to have been a lot of internal discussions on the formulation of the policy in question. The following is from the Kenyon Senate Minutes for Tuesday, October 25, 2007:

Quote:

...Kenyon swipe card. Agenda-- 11 committees of Board of Trustees. Several senior staff have liaison responsibilities with those committees. Dave McConnell's agenda-- request to Board of Trustees to purchase card swipe system. It is a request-- and a request only-- no plan, no research. Also, students don't want this. You've heard President Nugent say when we make a decision, and the decision isn't debated, she doesn't include input because it's disingenuous. Students will have opportunity to give input. Maybe lock during quiet hours? Let every student with card access all buildings? Only buildings in which you live? These questions can be helped by student input. Talk to students at other schools. It is reasonable to have input there. It's a safety and liability issue, huge pressure from parents, for years and years. We are in a different environment. Now's the time. Is it unfortunate? Yes. Timing with trustees-- they're here now, they meet in Feb, they meet in April. Committees will not meet in Feb-- this conversation needs to happen now. Question-- allocate the money? If we get the money, then get student input, etc., we can do it in March. That's the implication of the decision on Friday if the trustees
say yes.

AnnS: You say pressure has been building for years. Why now? A specific event?

TG: 3 things have come together: Virginia Tech, bomb threats, recent rash of vandalism. Upped the ante. Asked Jack Hornick to talk to security and get logs. Run logs for theft. Higher than you all think. We don't know if it's other students. We don't know who's doing it-- that's the challenge...

nothingcompares · 04-07-2009, 09:57 AM

Well, I think it's important to remember that Kenyon is safer than 99% of colleges in the USA. Students responded the way they did because having added security was seen as "unkenyon" meaning, students feel in such a community swipe cards are not needed. The College ended up compromising and only activating these cards after a certain hour.

StitchInTime · 04-10-2009, 03:21 PM

From Kenyon's self-reported crime statistics for 2007 which may be categorized as "unkenyon"-like:

Quote:

Sex Offenses: Forcible: On Campus: 3
Sex Offenses: In residential facilities: 3
Aggravated Assault: On Campus: 3
Burglary: On Campus: 30
Burglary: In residential facilities: 17
Arson: On Campus:
Arson: In residential facilities: 3
Motor Vehicle Theft: On Campus: 2

foolsgold · 04-11-2009, 08:35 PM

To understand those numbers, one must understand Kenyon's definitions for say a "forcible sex offense." My understanding is that any time you engage in any act that is remotely sexual without receiving explicit verbal approval for the specific act, you are engaging in a forcible sex offense. The college's policy on sexual offenses is the most ridiculous thing ever. I doubt there are two hundred students here who haven't technically violated it. Literally, by the colleges rules you are required to ask "may I kiss you." It doesn't matter if you have gone back to a room and gotten in bed together.

The dorms are safe. Most people don't lock their door, although safety and security constantly tells people they should.

This review is crap. There's a lock on every door. People feel safe here. It's also wrong that the proxy care system was the result of student requests. It was the result of the parents organization's (exists to bring in $) recommendation. Students literally protested the swipe cards when the board had its spring meeting at Kenyon last year. The swipe system is on from midnight to some time in the morning; I think it must be 5 or 6. All cards open all door, and I've heard that if your strong enough you can rip the door open even if it's locked, though in the many time I've forgotten my card and gotten locked out, this has never worked for me.

This is about as safe a campus as you are going to find anywhere.

StitchInTime · 04-12-2009, 01:38 PM

Quote:

(#4)...The dorms are safe. Most people don't lock their door, although safety and security constantly tells people they should.

This review is crap. There's a lock on every door. People feel safe here...

...This is about as safe a campus as you are going to find anywhere.

The following publicly available information will hopefully provide context to the judicious concern for dorm safety expressed both in the visit report and in Kenyon's own Senate meeting minutes. It will hopefully be a guide for any parent considering any residential college; not just Kenyon.

Kenyon College is located at 106 College Park Drive in Knox County, Ohio. The Knox County Ohio Sheriff's office (accessible via a link from Kenyon's site) provides a link to search for sexual offenders in Knox county.

Utilizing Kenyon's address in that searchable database results in the following:

Quote:

Found 1 offenders in 1 locations Radius: 1 mile

The details for the sexual offender show that he's listed the following reason:

Quote:

Offenses: Description: 2907.05 - Gross Sexual Imposition

Comments: Stayed by Court (cid 16 NN). Victim: Adult Female. File last modified 2008-08-04

So to summarize, within just 5,280 feet of the college that has a 'liberal' dorm security policy on locking its doors you will find an individual deemed worthy of being listed as a sexual offender by the Knox County Sheriff's office. This should put into context Tammy M. Gocial's comments in the Senate meeting (page 6):

Quote:

...Abducted and killed-- could it happen from a residence hall? Gambier is not immune from these things. We are in a society right now-- talk to your parents. They know the buildings aren't locked. If someone is sexually assaulted-- what is their reaction going to be to the college? I agree with you, I love that you have free access, you trust each other, sense of community and security. If my stuff gets stolen it's my fault. But if something big happens to you, your parents are going to sue us. We will go under. We will not be able to defend ourselves. Yes, the wrong people get into the buildings. Maybe the pizza guy is casing the joint. This is my job-- this is the President's job. 2/3 of trustees are alums. They support the community you've been a part of. They love this place and want to keep it what it is. If we get hit by this, we will be indefensible. In terms of long-term health of college, we will be mindful of that...

nothingcompares · 04-12-2009, 03:29 PM

I did the same search for Oberlin's campus and found 13 sex offenders within a mile, not ONE.

source: Knox County Ohio Sheriff's Office

nothingcompares · 04-12-2009, 03:33 PM

The 13 offenders are in a 2-mile radius, 5 offenders are in a 1-mile radius surrounding Oberlin College, just to clarify.

MolBioAce06 · 04-12-2009, 09:57 PM

Kenyon has a team of lawyers and Gocial is out. If you lock your room door you really won't have any problems. Your largest danger at Kenyon is getting hit by a car if you don't look before crossing the street or breaking an ankle on the Milk Carton hill after a rainstorm and drinking a lot at a different party before attempting the descent.

StitchInTime · 04-13-2009, 10:31 AM

Quote:

(#8) Kenyon has a team of lawyers and Gocial is out. If you lock your room door you really won't have any problems. Your largest danger at Kenyon is getting hit by a car if you don't look before crossing the street or breaking an ankle on the Milk Carton hill after a rainstorm and drinking a lot at a different party before attempting the descent.

Lawyering-up does not bring back a loved-one and is an expo facto response to a situation (like the Jeanne Clery murder which resulted in the Clery Act) that can be prevented.

According to the Kenyon Collegian, the "danger[s]" go beyond the ones cited:

Quote:

...McConnell said that there has been a discussion about dorm safety for several years in the parents committee, but it gained importance this year [2007] because of a convergence of three issues: the four bomb threats on campus this fall, Virginia Tech and the fact that there have been 23 trespass letters sent in the last three years that banned people from campus. McConnell said that there are about 130 thefts on campus each year...

MolBioAce06 · 04-13-2009, 01:24 PM

Like I said, lock your door, and might I add don't leave your laptop sitting out(unattended) in the publicly accessible library for a long period of time. For example, don't go to lunch and then be surprised your Mac Book Pro is gone an hour later. Use common sense and don't put yourself in a bad situation. It helps to think like an adult and not a naive teen no matter where you live or attend school because bad things happen, even in a very safe place like Gambier, OH.

sammather · 07-17-2009, 02:01 PM

The "four bomb threats" were emails that were generated in Eastern Europe and sent to about thirty colleges. They were not Kenyon-specific, and even though the Department of Homeland Security scoured campus, we weren't even forced to cancel classes. They were a total hoax. As for the security issue: I'll echo what every other Kenyon student/alum seems to be saying here. There's no cause for concern. Kenyon is not Lehigh or UChicago, where students get mugged with some regularity. When the crime stats say "aggravated assault," they referring to a fist fight or something that breaks out between a couple of drunk frat guys. I walk home at 3 or 4 in the morning alone all the time and have never felt unsafe, much less been threatened. Theft is a problem (sort of), but in two years here I have never once locked my door and have not had anything stolen.