Michael Woodworth
Equinox Staff
A treacherous walk shrouded in almost complete darkness can be a scary one. The daredevil walking through the unknown gives off a sense of bravery, but still shows timidness.
While there may be many spots on campus that come to mind, the spot being discussed is the walkway to Wal-Mart.
The walkway to the business giant is being targeted as a possible location for a new spotlight, according to Katelyn Williams, the Student Body President.
“That area is traveled often and can be scary,” she commented.
Williams said Student Government is currently talking about putting a spotlight on that bridge, but there is no set date.
She added that students have been pressing the matter since last year.
Whether it was the mountain lion scare at the beginning of last year or people looming around, this walkway creates a stir among the student body.
“I like that [putting a light in] a lot because it’s going to make it a lot safer,” sophomore Cali Hebert said.
She added that she frequently goes running in the area and that she is all for the idea of installing a light.
One snag in putting a spotlight in the area is that Student Government would be using reserve budget money instead of the main budget money, according to Williams.
“We are considering our options in putting this plan into action,” she said. She also noted that they haven’t used the reserve budget in years.
Another snag in the planning of placing a light on the foreboding bridge is whether or not the area is campus or city property.
Katie Corbett, college liaison officer of the Keene Police Department, said she believes it is campus property. Williams said she believes otherwise though. When a project like this goes underway, three different departments are brought in to make sure everything is put together and running smoothly. According to Laura Seraichick, chief information officer of the IT Group, Campus Safety, IT and the Physical Plant will need to be brought in to implement the project. Seraichick explained of a summer long project of fixing and restoring all the emergency blue lights and spotlights on campus.
“We want to make sure every single light on campus is working,” she said. She added that all though there may be many different designs of blue lights and spotlights, they wanted all of them to have the same functionality. In all, there are over 100 safety installments on campus.
“I think it’s [installing a light] better. A lot of students go out for late night shopping,” senior Lauren Campbell said. “It’s good for safety. If anything happens you can see.”
The students call this campus home and expect to feel safe when roaming even the outskirts of campus.
“It’s [Keene State College] like a small little city,” said Corbett.
Williams said she wants to have the installment of the spotlight as soon as possible, hopefully by the end of the semester. She added that it will, however be done by the end of year, if all goes according to plan.
“Lighting makes you feel safer; I think it’ll make students feel safer,” she said. “You can’t put a price of the safety of the students.”
Michael Woodworth can be contacted at
mwoodworth@keene-equinox.com