The Drive to Keep Campus Safe
It’s midnight and Sheila Zigler is parked outside the Erb Memorial Union. It’s Saturday and it’s raining. The smell of fast food – her dinner – fills the van. A music lover, she escapes from her surroundings for a moment, lost in the melody. Zigler normally spends this time with friends, but for the last three years she has been dedicated to the Assault Prevention Shuttle, a commitment that includes many weekend nights.
The moment that she has been patiently waiting for arrives: A rider comes bounding down the steps toward the van. Zigler opens the automatic door, which slides open with a robotic buzzing, and the rider climbs in the back before the rain can soak through to the bone. The rider is only going a couple of blocks, but it’s not the distance of a ride that’s important.
A co-director, Zigler plans the organization’s budget and manages the staff, which she says is like a family. “I really love working for APS,” she says. “It’s a service that’s absolutely necessary, and we’re very fortunate to have one of the only programs of its kind in the country.”
The service runs from 6 p.m. to midnight, Sunday through Thursday, and 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday during the fall and winter. The schedule changes with the longer days of spring, running from 7 p.m. to midnight and 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. Riders can call in at any time during operating hours, but Zigler recommends calling before 6 p.m. and leaving a detailed voice message if they know when they will need to be picked up.
Despite the commitment of staff and volunteers, Zigler says that APS turns away 20 percent of riders each term because they don’t have the resources to serve everyone who calls. “This issue is especially relevant now because we’ve had several cases of assault reported on campus since the beginning of the year. They were all preventable; we just can’t be everywhere at the same time,” she says.
Last year, APS’s budget took a significant cut based on data from the previous year, when the program failed to spend a minimum 70 percent of its budget. “It’s dealt a huge blow to us because we are struggling to maintain our vans, which is the foundation of our service,” Zigler says.
The Assault Prevention Shuttle is a free service of the University of Oregon that serves students, faculty and staff who might otherwise risk assault by walking home. Founded in 2003, APS serves members of the university community without regard to race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.
APS has also reached out to the deaf community on campus by creating an AOL Instant Messenger account that is accessible during operating hours and educating its staff and volunteers about deaf culture and basic Sign Language skills.
The program has grown to a staff of 12, but it would be unable to operate without the support of volunteers who give hundreds of hours each term. Zigler says, “If it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t exist.”
If interested in volunteering, call 346-5063, or e-mail the volunteer coordinators at aps@uoregon.edu. To schedule a ride, call 346-RIDE (7433). Also visit the APS Web site, www.uoregon.edu/~aps, or check out its Facebook page “We Drive Assault-Preventing Vans.”
Branden Johnson is doing his victory lap (a.k.a. fifth year) as a public relations major with minors in Spanish and business administration. An employee of APS, he is dedicated to its mission of preventing assault on campus.
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