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Safety is low priority for students
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As court proceedings draw near in the case of the latest fatal attack on Boise’s greenbelt, preparedness doesn’t seem to be a priority among students.
The jury trial of Darrell Payne is set to begin on Sept. 14 in the Ada County Courthouse.
Payne has been charged with the kidnapping, rape and first-degree murder of Boise State student Samantha Maher in July of last year. Maher was on her way to class when she was abducted in Julia Davis Park.
According to Ada County Sheriff’s Sgt. Gary Rouse, seminars held last semester were well-attended by students, to a point.
“After a few seminars, interest declined,” said Rouse, “The last one was cancelled due to lack of interest.”
Rouse blamed lack of involvement on fading concern in the minds of students.
“As time goes by, people seem to forget and let their guard down,” he said.
Kimber Shaw, interim director of Academic Support in the Gateway Center, agreed. “Students have a natural tendency to put off preparing until an incident occurs,” she said.
Shaw points to similarities in other aspects of students’ lives, “Students don’t do financial planning until they are out of money and don’t work on study skills until they fail that first big exam.”
Rouse said that the campus is safe, for the most part.
“It comes down to people depending not so much on police,” he said. “They should walk in well-lit areas after dark, and travel in groups.”
Shaw detects a feeling of insulation from violence at Boise State. “There is a tendency to feel sheltered in Boise,” said Shaw. “I still see females out jogging alone at night.”
Keeping students aware of potential dangers is an ongoing struggle. “Freshman orientation seems like a good idea,” said Shaw, “but those sessions concentrate more on registration and advising.”
“Deputies contacted the Gateway Center about being involved in freshman orientation,” said Rouse, “but were told that they had so much to do already, there was no time to put it in.”
“We have tried to include safety information and study skills in the orientation,” said Shaw, “but students shut down and miss out on the really important stuff.”
Students who live in the Residence Halls receive safety training, and parent orientation is full of safety concerns, Shaw said.
“Nationwide, we have relied on orientation programs to supply all of the information,” said Shaw.
“Perhaps a Safety Awareness Week with Campus Safety involved could be put together. There seems to be a week for everything else.”
Women’s Center Coordinator Melissa Wintrow said she struggles with self-defense seminars.
“Unless the training is ongoing, the moves don’t become second nature and can lead to a false sense of security,” she said.
Wintrow finds being more aware and using common sense might be better for most students, though she doesn’t completely discount the idea of self-defense training.
“When I can more freely move my body, I stand up taller and it builds self-esteem.”
Rouse said, “If students are interested (in seminars), we would put some on. The department has a pool of specialists to draw from.”
Most troubling to Wintrow, however, is the amount of everyday violence that goes unannounced.
“In our society there tends to be a sensationalization of the stranger in the bushes, a focus on the attack,” she said.
“Far more is the case of women being hurt every day all over by people who they know,” said Wintrow. “Talking about that is such a taboo.”
Matt Neznanski