Birmingham-Southern CollegeHealth & Safety Summary

Written by Kriti Mishra

Kriti Mishra

Hometown

Hoover, Ala.

View all previous student authors

From the time you enter the gates until the time you leave, you can feel the presence of security on campus. Each student or faculty member gets signaled in with a friendly wave, and all other guests get registered at the guard shack. There are also blue-light stations with emergency phones that are located all over in times of need. Campus Police cars regularly patrol the premises, and they are always glad to give someone a ride to anywhere they need to be. For each dorm, there is an access code which is required to get into all of the outside doors. Students are told not to give this code to anyone else, and it changes monthly for even more security. Several times throughout the year, the Campus Police sends out an e-mail with security tips on how to keep your belongings safe. Once outside the gates, the neighborhood can be pretty sketchy, so most students tend to avoid it if at all possible. Although there have been several service projects and rejuvenation efforts by both the school and the city of Birmingham, the surrounding neighborhoods remain one of the higher crime areas in the county. Security recommends not traveling alone at night, especially on foot, and they are always on call in case of an emergency. With 18 full-time officers, security seems to be a high priority on campus, and most students feel safe in the somewhat questionable neighborhood.