York security and safety budget increases to $10.5 million

York administration is adding an additional $1.5 million for new safety initiatives on top of the regular $9-million annual budget for core security expenses.
According to Robert Castle, senior executive officer to the vice-president finance and administration, the decision came as a result of the 2010 METRAC Safety Audit Report.
“The university has been expending annually an additional $1.5 million on safety-related budget lines, which means a total expenditure of approximately $10.5 million annually,” says Castle.
Reviewing last year’s priorities and moving toward this year’s priorities, Vice President of Finance and Administration Gary Brewer says the budget is being aligned with campus priorities for a meeting in June, during which budget plans from 2014 to 2018 will be set.
Questions remain as to whether the current budget model fits the university’s current priorities.
“The current budget is indeed an incremental-based model,” says Castle.
“It lacks some of the transparency, ease of understanding, and clear alignment with strategic priorities we believe are necessary for the university to achieve its academic objectives going forward.”
According to Brewer, administration will be moving toward a more transparent, accountable budget model instead of using the older, incremental-based model.
A number of significant initiatives will be implemented, including additional safety awareness, the active bystander program, the violence and risk assessment initiative, expanded shuttle services, and expanded emergency telephone systems.
“A major element to achieve this (campus safety) will be the introduction of the active bystander program,” says Castle, “which is designed over time to connect broadly with members of the community to provide them with skills to recognize safety concerns and how they might be more actively engaged in creating a safer community.”
A large part of the new initiatives are getting people fully engaged in creating a safe community, according to Brewer.
Active bystander training is designed to give people the skills needed to identify at-risk situations. This means recognizing their own obstacles for getting involved, which could be as simple as identifying a problem and calling security.
York administration has been relying on the Green Dot program which started in the University of Kentucky.
According to Castle, the university plans to take the essence of the Green Dot program and “Yorkify it” to make the program consistent with the needs of the York community.
Campus safety is a top priority. According to Brewer, it’s a societal issue and is about increasing the broader idea of safety on campus.
 
Ryan Moore
Assistant News Editor
Image source: yFile