For many, the past week or so has been academically stressful with the never-ending bombardment of midterms and papers. On top of that, I’m sure with the greek pledging still in session, many more are struggling to balance both social and academic life. This has not been an easy week for any of us — meaning late night visits to the library and not leaving until you are able to recite Dante Alighieri’s “Inferno” in its original Italian and perhaps Swahili.
As much as I enjoy tastelessly bashing Binghamton, I feel obligated to also admit defeat when the school does something right. And the truth is, the security system on this campus is actually, well … good. I’m not talking about the administration that continuously leaks private student information (hell no, not that one). I’m talking about on-campus safety as a whole.
There is just the right number of police to not feel harassed every Friday night, but just enough to feel safe treading the mean streets of the “Binghamton Brain” at midnight, especially with the glow-in-the-dark blue telephones every so often.
Speaking of on-campus safety, did you hear the one about the 31-year-old non-student who lived in Hillside since the beginning of the semester and was arrested for assault, burglary and criminal impersonation?
William F. Toy was arrested early last week after being charged with numerous misdemeanors, of which includes going under names such as Joshua Buntyn and Brady Reier-Miller. As if that is not enough, there is also a warrant for Toy’s arrest in Washington state for identity theft.
I’m going to ignore the fact that this guy has been living among us for a little over a month, and go straight to asking where the Filmore Hall officials were during all of this? Residential assistants and directors alike have the responsibility to ensure the safety and security of residents who live in campus halls and communities. I’m sure it’s not too incredibly difficult to differentiate between a 31-year-old, who was not previously living there last semester, and a bunch of familiar college students.
There is a fine line that separates being the cool RA, who everyone wants to have when they apply for housing, and the jackass. Just as much as the next person, I hope my RA next semester is someone understanding and considerate, but also doesn’t forget the priorities they promised to hold during the residential assistant selection process. In short, all I’m saying is, be suspicious if one of your residents is housing a 31-year-old man. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.
College is supposed to be a place where you can have fun and learn for four years. I mean, after that, we’re all headed to graduate school, the workforce or other plans some might have. These are supposed to be the best years of our lives, so let’s enjoy them. We don’t need things like identity theft or impersonation to hinder our experience; there’s enough of that in the real world.