Published: March 24, 2008 12:14 am      

Program making it safer at WVU

FAIRMONT — Students at West Virginia University have found a voice when it comes to safety on the college campus.

The program, dubbed PhotoVoice, allows students to submit photos of what they consider safety concerns around campus and in Morgantown, said Kristen Thomaselli, member of the Student Government Association and chairperson of the PhotoVoice committee. The program was implemented by the SGA with the support of the WVU president’s office.

According to Thomaselli, this year a team of 15 student volunteers used disposable cameras to document what they considered safety issues. The students took pictures of everything from lighting to sidewalks and stairs.

The students took around 50 photographs. They also made suggestions as to how to improve the safety issues. The photos along with the suggestions were compiled into a report that was presented to administration officials at the university.

The students’ safety concerns included damaged parking signs, damaged railings, worn speed bumps and a wall that needs patching among other issues, Thomaselli said. She added that all of the issues that were presented to officials at the university have either been fixed or are in the process of being addressed.

“This program is very important because safety is the main concern for students and their parents,” Thomaselli, a junior at the university, said.

This is the third year the program has been implemented. Thomaselli said that the program will be continued in the future as well. She added that she hopes more students become involved in the coming years.

“It’s really great that the students have the opportunity to work with the university administration,” she said about the program. “It shows that the students have a voice.”

Last year’s report included requests for better lighting in areas around campus. In response to the report, university officials earmarked $250,000 for new campus lighting.

Thomaselli went on to say that a new interactive feature may be added to the program in the future. This feature will allow all WVU students to submit digital photos of what they consider to be safety issues onto the SGA’s Web site. This program is in the early planning stages, she added.

“Students walk around our campus and buildings every day,” said WVU President Mike Garrison. “The great thing about this project is that it gives us more eyes in identifying places where there is a problem or an improvement is needed.”

E-mail Paul Fallon at pfallon@timeswv.com.