Assessing police presence in UMD's residence halls

UMPD Officer walking down a hallway in Anne Arundel Hall (Razak Diallo/ The Black Explosion)

“Four… we’re gonna start from the top,” an officer told Alyssa McDonnell, a freshman criminology and criminal justice major, after stepping into an elevator with her in Anne Arundel Hall in September 2023.

McDonnell had been a resident on the fourth floor of the dormitory for only a month. She returned to the residence hall lobby after throwing away her trash when she spotted the university police officer in the lobby. As McDonnell made her way to her room, the officer began walking down the hall, going floor by floor.

“I was a little freaked out,” McDonnell said in an interview. “I don’t really want them searching my room, really going through anything. I mean, they didn’t, but I don’t know. It was just unexpected.” 

In August 2023, the Department of Resident Life and the University of Maryland Police Department launched an informal initiative to assign specific officers to serve as “community liaisons” to individual residential communities.

The initiative's primary goal is to get officers to invest more time in specific residential communities and halls, according to the Department of Residential Life. 

UMPD visits and walk-throughs in residence halls are not something new. In a statement to the Black Explosion, the department said “...the community policing program was a collaborative effort to reframe police visits to the residence halls to create more structure with officers assigned to specific halls to create consistency and familiarity with staff and students in the community.” 

Lt. Rosanne Hoaas said the goal aligns with a wider UMPD mission of expanding their presence beyond incident response through community policing, specifically under item four of the dashboard “Enhancing Safety and Community Policing at the University of Maryland” in order to foster partnership between UMPD and the wider university community.

Max Filliben, a double major in math and classics and resident assistant in Anne Arundel Hall, sees the initiative as a source of confusion and frustration for residents who have to experience a police presence in what is essentially their home. 

“You’re about to take a shower or something, so you’re in a robe, and then you see a policeman. Like that can be startling,” Filliben said. “Trying to make reparations is not a bad thing; it’s a matter of how they do that.” 

This expansion of UMPD presence opposes item 13 of the 2021 dashboard “University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders,” which aims to “end the militarization of UMPD and sanctioning safe residential halls and environments by removing armed police & decreasing their presence.” 

The “Enhancing Safety and Community Policing” dashboard was created as one of the action items from item 13.

Resident Life outlined the role of community liaison officers as a consistent police presence in each residential community, participating in resident assistant training, attending events held in residential communities and connecting with students and staff. 

It is unclear if a direct announcement about police presence or the August initiative has ever been shared with residents.

“Our residence hall community staff, including resident assistants, community assistants, resident directors, and community directors, are always available to answer questions, provide support, and assist residents,” Department of Resident Life officials said in a statement to The Black Explosion.

RAs and RHA members have been informed of the August initiative since the start of the Fall 2023 semester. 

Anya Olson, freshman environmental science and technology major and senator on the North Hill area council, said she was informed of the initiative in a relay meeting early last semester. 

“I think the plan is just for this to happen and to try to create organic interactions. I'm not sure if there's a plan to really tell residents,” said Olson.

Jahnavi Kirkire, a junior government and politics and public policy dual degree and resident assistant in Anne Arundel Hall, is concerned with the lack of forewarning about police presence given to residents and RAs. 

“We find out when they come, not beforehand,” Kirkire said.

Biochemistry major Kevin Duru, who’s also a resident assistant at Queen Anne’s Hall and Coordinator of Resident Facilities with the Resident Hall Association, has a more positive outlook on the initiative. 

“At first, I was apprehensive about it because people would be scared…I’ve gotten the opportunity to talk to a couple of the UMPD officers that have come by, and at least the ones I saw, they were great conversationalists,” Duru said. “They kind of gave UMPD a better reputation…at the very least, I can vouch for those officers when I’m talking to my residents.”

Pennsylvania State University, another Big 10 institution, has a similar relationship between its police department and residential life. The Penn State Department of Residential Life specified that officers do not walk residential floors unless called by a student or residential life for assistance or in the case of an ongoing situation. Officers often come into buildings in the evening to chat with students and ensure the ground floor is secure. 

Rehema Ngobu, a sophomore public health science major, lives in Oakland Hall. She said there is a large police presence on the building’s first floor and basement.

“It takes away the idea of individual housing…I know it’s dorms, it's owned by UMD, but at the same time…why are there cops here?” said Ngobu.