Northwestern administrators will unveil a plan Saturday morning to improve campus lighting as a response to safety concerns stemming from the Oct. 8 assault of a female graduate student jogging on the Lakefill.
The proposal, which would increase the number of floodlights on each dorm, measure the light intensity in parking lots, pathways and roadways, and develop a campus light-density map, will be announced officially during University President Henry Bienen’s Family Weekend speech to parents at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Eugene Sunshine, NU’s senior vice president for business and finance, said Bienen will touch on safety issues during the speech and detail NU’s previous and current efforts in alleviating safety concerns.
“Bienen wants parents and students to know this is generally a safe campus,” Sunshine said. “Our objective now is to make it completely safe.”
Ronald Nayler, associate vice president for facilities management, said administrators have worked during past years to increase campus safety but called the Lakefill assault “one incident too many.”
Although Nayler was unsure of the time frame and cost of expanding the floodlights on each dorm, he said administrators decided to add the lights because they can be installed quickly and would give maximum lighting for the lowest number of fixtures.
Although the floodlights may not be installed immediately because of costs and preparation, Nayler said the facilities management staff already has begun measuring the light density on certain parts of campus. The staff has been taking light meters to parking lots, roadways and pathways, and the measurements will be compared to a national standard, Nayler said.
“We are basically going to be measuring the light intensity across campus,” Nayler said. “We’ll be able to have the data to measure our light levels against the generally accepted ones rather than make subjective decisions on how much light there should be in certain areas.”
Light readings also will be taken along the jogging path on the Lakefill, Nayler said. A man attempted to sexually assault an NU graduate student Oct. 8 who was running on that pathway. Police have not apprehended anyone in connection with the crime.
Student leaders who lobbied for lighting changes throughout the past weeks said they were looking forward to hearing more about the plan from administrators. Laura Millendorf, president of the Women’s Coalition, called the announcement “fabulous news.”
“There is nothing to be unhappy about,” said Millendorf, a Weinberg junior. “Women’s Co has been trying to get these changes enacted for a long time. Even if this plan isn’t everything we asked for, it is still a great start.”
Women’s Co has been leading the safety campaign, urging more than 250 phone calls students Monday to make to administrators asking for action on safety concerns. The group also has worked on a petition calling for extended shuttle and Escort Service hours and plans to continue publicizing their cause during Family Weekend.
“Once the plan comes out, we’ll see how much we want to continue to work on,” Millendorf said. “In these kinds of things, numbers are what counts. A few students won’t make a difference to a large university, but 300 students will. I’d like to think our activism played some part in this decision.”
Administrators plan to describe further details of the proposal Nov. 28 at the first meeting of this year’s Campus Safety and Crime Prevention Committee. Associated Student Government Student Services Vice President Courtney Brunsfeld, a member of the committee, said other student groups are continuing to work on safety issues and will not allow the lighting plan to be the last step in campus safety.
“After the overwhelming student reaction to the attack, it is great and completely necessary to make students feel safe on campus,” said Brunsfeld, a Weinberg junior. “This shows that when students care enough to speak out and act the administration will be responsive to their concerns.”
