Students are questioning whether the security department at Pace hinders or helps them, as more and more incidents involving the lack of effective security are brought to the students’ attention.

Various students complain that security on campus is not strict enough regarding who they let in and out of campus. There are reports of security letting people through the gates of entrance three without so much as checking for an ID.

According to university Director of Safety and Security Vincent Beatty, official policy states that if anyone has a valid Pace parking sticker on their car and they are alone they should not be stopped, but if that car has multiple people in it or no valid parking sticker, then the guards are supposed to stop them.

As many students and faculty are aware of, this policy isn’t always enforced and gates are opened without hesitation to countless people that wish to drive into campus.

“I think the security guards get lazy and think they know the faces and cars of the residents here,” Beatty said. “This was recently brought to my attention and for obvious safety reasons it shouldn’t be happening.”

There is usually not a security guard present at the booth on entrance three on weekdays. Beatty explained that because of budget cuts, there was no reason to have a guard there all day since Pace is an open campus anyway. Now, there is only a guard in the booth from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. on weekdays and all day during the weekends.

There have also been complaints from students who say that security has denied them a chaperon late at night.

According to Beatty, university policy also states that security must oblige to anybody who asks to be escorted to a different location on campus.

“Last semester I had been drinking and I asked security for a ride up to my townhouse so I wouldn’t have to walk alone,” junior Asia Arnoux said. “The security guard flat out told me no and kept driving. It was so aggravating.”

Another issue that has been addressed by Pace students is the long wait for a cab ride between the Briarcliff and Pleasantville campuses. The cab company Pace uses comes from Cortland Manor, NY, which is about 20 minutes away from Pace. Just last month alone, 86 cab rides were needed, which Pace security had to pay for. Beatty also knows that this is an issue because the company will only reserve one cab for Pace students a night even though more than one is needed, which results in the long wait.

This is not the only problem students have regarding transportation on campus. There have been incidents where security has denied the after hours taxi service entirely to residents who live on the Briarcliff campus.

“My freshman year, I didn’t have my Pace ID on me so security wouldn’t give me a taxi to take me back to my dorm on Briarcliff,” sophomore Samantha Lucier said. “I told them I went to school here and if there was any way they could look me up and they refused to help me. My friends and I walked from Pleasantville to Briarcliff at 2:30 in the morning.”

No college education is required to become a security guard at Pace, only a high school diploma or a GED. Those who apply to be a security guard must take a written test, agree to be fingerprinted, take a yearly refresher course, undergo a psychological exam, take a drug test, and go through 16 hours of on the job training.

Security guard responsibilities range from clerical work and working with the local authorities to mitigate risks. According to Beatty, the biggest problems on campus are alcohol related, so that is what much of the security guards efforts go to.