College Takes Down SafetyWalk Info

College administrators have begun to remove contact information for SafetyWalk from public locations around campus.

Their decision comes several days after The Crimson reported that the student-run program of late-night walking escorts is apparently defunct—with no current members and no one manning its phones.

By last Friday, administrators had changed the group’s voicemail message to inform callers that “at this time, SafetyWalk is not operating,” advising students instead to use shuttle or van service provided by the college.

The group’s number has already been removed from the “Help at Harvard” poster which hangs in various locations around campus, according to Assistant Dean of the College Paul J. McLoughlin II.

McLoughlin said he is “fully ready” to notify the Harvard community about SafetyWalk’s dissolution if the group fails to register by the Dec. 31 deadline.

All of the stickers advertising SafetyWalk’s phone number will be removed from blue light phones and other campus locations, he said.

In the wake of the recent sexual assaults near campus and the apparent dissolution of SafetyWalk, Associate Dean of the College Judith H. Kidd said that the College is taking new steps to keep students informed about safety on campus.

The Undergraduate Council’s Safety Committee—which Kidd chairs—plans to reexamine the Harvard University Police Department’s alert notification system and renew their focus on efforts to notify students about pathways designated as well-traveled and well-lit, according to Kidd.

The committee members have arranged to place maps of blue light security phones and designated pathways in all shuttle buses, she said, and they are planning to place stickers listing shuttle service hours and the van service phone number on blue light phones near shuttle stops.

While administrators are focusing on promoting the shuttle and van services, some students have expressed interest in restarting SafetyWalk, McLoughlin said.

However, the reasons behind the original program’s failure must first be determined, he said.

McLoughlin said an extra van or paid walking escorts might be a better solution to safety concerns than a student-run volunteer group.

“We shouldn’t go on old presuppositions,” McLoughlin said. “We don’t want to be back in place, advertise for one year, then have the leadership [of SafetyWalk] graduate and be back where we started.”

—Staff writer Nadia L. Oussayef can be reached at oussayef@fas.harvard.edu.