The feedback Security has gotten about the Lead Officer Program from all the different facets of UR has been overwhelmingly positive. Part of this, of course, is due to the idea behind the program – fostering community through interpersonal relationships with security officers. But, a large part of why the program has proved so successful thus far is the care Director of UR Security Walter Mauldin put into choosing officers who have since done an excellent job.
The Lead Officers have done a tremendous job, working hard and setting precedents for the future years of the Lead Officer Program. Just on the River Campus, they have forged very real relationships with students that make every student safer.
These relationships are the reason that the Lead Officers cannot be replaced in the reapplication coming up in June – too much stands to be lost. If the officers currently in place are to be moved or replaced, all of the hard work put in will be marginalized.
It is true that the current Lead Officers won’t be going too far away – they will simply be in new places doing different things. It is also true that every security officer deserves a chance to get involved in the community and take on additional responsibility in a way that the Lead Officers are able to. However, those two facts do not counteract the benefits of keeping the old Lead Officers in place, if that is where they want to remain.
Rather than simply allowing the entire department to apply for the Lead Officer positions this summer and putting everyone back on even ground, it would be wise for UR Security to take into account the gains of leaving the current officers in place. These officers have developed more than relationships and trust – they have set up a new structure and in some cases have programs that are to be put in place next semester. So instead of revamping the whole program this summer, they should reassess the current officers in place, their strengths and weaknesses, and decide in conjunction with the current officers how the program should proceed. These officers have a great amount of knowledge after working in the field for a year, and their insight as well as the sheer amount of work they have put into their jobs deserve more consideration than they are currently set up to receive.
