Wayne State’s Student Senators hold the responsibility of listening to student concerns, discussing the significance of these concerns and making decisions that will help improve college life throughout campus. Some of these concerns are taken to administration for approval. One concern the Senate is looking at is increasing the lighting around campus to help students feel safer.

“We’re looking into things that can improve student safety,” Adam Smith, a member of Student Senate, said. “It’s obviously something very important and something people talk about a lot,” Smith continued.

The idea of adding more lighting throughout campus came to fruition when a multitude of students voiced their concerns about designated smoking areas throughout campus and the lack of lighting in these areas. Many of the designated smoking sites are located on the outer edge of campus, not in the heart of campus where most of the lighting is. This has raised concern amongst some of the individuals who regularly utilize these smoking areas.

“What we [went ahead and] decided to do is initiate a light walk,” Smith said. “We looked at things like, where we could add lighting in the spots that we have right now, what we can do to improve them, whether we should trim bushes or not, basically every option we have to keep the areas we have right now safe,” Smith said.

Student Senate made the decision to go ahead and put money aside for lighting incase light additions are something they decide to pursue, but in order for approval, the biggest thing needed is support.

“There’s a process you have to go through, obviously,” Smith said. “Any big changes like this you have to get approval from the Student Senate itself, the Faculty Senate, and has to eventually be approved by President Rames. At the end of the day, getting her approval is what really counts. If she sees it as something that’s necessary, it’s something that we will definitely look forward to getting done.”

A project like this would be funded by the college, as the senate is given a certain amount of money to work with each school year for plans around campus to help improve WSC in any way they can.

More lighting around campus is not the only thing the senate has talked about, as they have fielded other suggestions when it comes to safety. Some of these ideas have prompted more significant conversations than others but all decisions are made with consideration of the student population as a whole.

“Another thing that we’re looking into is something called Peace of Mind,” Smith said. “Students would be given a device that they could put on their key chain and if they were to feel unsafe or if something were to be happening to them, they can press a button three times on their keychain and it would immediately dial emergency services, and it will send them to wherever you are. Just another outlet and way of giving people an option to feel safe.”

Student safety will always be a relevant and important issue both on and off campus in Wayne and is something that any student can voice their concerns and opinions over.

“I would just invite anyone in the Wayne State campus community, if you have an issue or a concern, to come forward and talk to us,” Smith said. “Our meetings are open to the public, so anyone is more than welcome to come talk and we’re definitely willing to listen and see what we can do to help,” Smith said.