This year is the first time UI police will look for students to work security for them in more areas than just the Museum of Art.
By Jacob Miller
For years, the University of Iowa police had students work security at the UI Museum of Art, but now, they want to expand that service to numerous areas.
The museum-security job mainly entails watching the artwork and assisting the regular security staff. This new opportunity for students in different areas will give them a chance to integrate themselves into the police system, gain some work experience, and learn the ways of a police officer, said Jonathan Ron, the UI Security Division supervisor.
“[This gives an opportunity to] see how this department operates as a whole,” Ron said. “But also see how the police are working at that point and what they do, how they do it, and why they do things.
“Sometimes things are being misconceived, and they think, ‘Oh, why do the police do that?’ But those who will work for us will get a better chance to understand why it happens.”
Students are being hired to help supplement the regular security force. They will also have supervisors to help them at work.
Ron said there are many new opportunities that will be available for students working security, including walking dorms at night, 4 to 5 a.m. routes to get the campus ready each day, and helping out at sporting events. Among the duties expected of potential employees involve checking bags, directing traffic, and other tasks.
“It is an opportunity to educate,” said Alton Poole, the UI police community-outreach officer. “The Sociology Department is starting a new criminology curriculum, so students who are interested in criminology could very well work in our Security Division but create an opportunity to actually network and be able to talk to officers one-on-one, to develop relationships, and get an idea of what they are getting into if they were to choose that career.”
The University of Northern Iowa has similar job opportunities for students called Student Patrol, which has been around since 1990. According to the UNI website, the Student Patrol assists officers by “providing non-technical services, such as building security, deterrence patrol, vehicle-escort program, theft prevention, and by assisting at a variety of university events.”
“It’s been very successful,” said Joe Tyler, the UNI associate director of public safety. “They’re not meant to supplement but to enhance and do different tasks and duties.”
Currently, the UI police have hired 20 student security officers, and they had seven to 10 students working at the Sept. 3 football game in Kinnick.
Ron said student security officers are being paid $10 per hour. For now, they will have supervisors to guide them, but the goal is to eventually have students be able to work up into a supervisory role.
He said he is excited about this new opportunity and has actively worked on hiring new students. One way the department has reached out was at the Job Fair last week.
“We are looking to hire,” Ron said. “We are looking for people, and that’s our main thing.
For more information, visit hireahawk.com
