BY RACHEL GIESEL
Staff Writer
[email protected]

The Office of Safety and Security held an informational session on Thursday to explore the possibility of implementing a closed-circuit television system.

The school has still not reached a decision on the camera system.

“There’s nothing firm that I’m aware of on the table,” ASG Advisor and Director of Student Involvement Gretchen Symons said. “I think [the information session was] just an exploration of what the campus community feels.”

The proposed CCTV system would be located at most entrances of the Campus Center. There would be 19 cameras total, costing about $40,000. The CCTV system would be monitored at all times by Safety and Security. Footage would also be archived.

Director of Safety and Security Jeff Schneider said the CCTV system would be used exclusively for safety, security and law enforcement purposes for the community.

“It provides an extra set of eyes for my department [so we can] prevent things before they happen,” Schneider said.

Schneider proposed this system after examining the frequency of thefts from the Campus Center, such as couches, rugs, televisions and computers. He has been actively pursuing the approval of the cameras since September of last year.

ASG Assistant Director of Student Affairs Joseph Lasko, ’13, said he wasn’t sure whether the investment was worth the return value.

“Is it worth $30,000 to save a couch or two?” Lasko said.

Schneider said the use of the CCTV system would hopefully be a deterrent for potential thefts and other problems.

“It’s not a cure all remedy,” Schneider said. “It’s merely a tool.”

Schneider said the next proposition would target parking lots to prevent vehicular theft.

The current proposal is still in its early stages.

“There’s a lot more conversation that needs to happen before… we’re going to change things on campus that way,” Symons said.

The proposition will be brought before the faculty council, as well as proposed to a larger section of the student body.