In the past month, the UT community has received various incident notifications, many of a reoccuring type. Even though UTPD hosts a 24/7 service with its own dispatch center, aggravated assault cases still find themselves at home around campus.

While UTPD works to combat the unsafe environment on Guadalupe Street, students should take a more active role in campus safety by downloading the app LiveSafe. 

LiveSafe, a free mobile app, gives users access to a variety of safety features, including immediate location sharing with UTPD dispatch. Its text messaging feature accounts for real-life scenarios where a bystander may not be in a safe position to call 911.

“(LiveSafe) has been phenomenal with the department,” UTPD Lt. Hector Luevano said. “We rely on the community. They’re the eyes and ears.”

UTPD had hoped to create a type of individualized communication device that would benefit the community 10 years ago. The user-friendliness and personability of the app makes for an ideal resource to help the community better protect one another.However, a stigma exists around the police force and making the effort to call 911. LiveSafe provides a more casual method of communication, which may ease a user’s hesitation. When a user sends a message to UTPD, an immediate notification pops up for on-duty officers. Additionally, its option to report suspicious activity could help call attention to an unstable individual without directly incriminating them. 

LiveSafe also has an option to make a user’s tip anonymous. This feature could possibly encourage anxious or unwilling students to engage more with campus safety. 

“I would be happier knowing that I have (LiveSafe) just in case (something happens),” sustainability sophomore Liv Navarro said. 

If more students convey their concerns to UTPD, unsafe situations are more likely to be prevented. UTPD primarily caters to the student community, and LiveSafe functions as a way to further protect UT students. Having this app would be a direct connection to UTPD, making it easier for officers to respond faster to alerts.

New Student Services advertises LiveSafe in their orientation programming, yet many students still aren’t aware of its existence. According to associate director Kyle St. Nicholas, the department meets annually with UTPD and is in constant discussion about how to increase student involvement. Opportunities they present are often underutilized. 

“It’s pretty hit or miss. Students are hearing and interacting with it when it is relevant to them and when they’re ready to learn,” St. Nicholas said. “We’ve always been working on ways of, ‘How can we incentivize more folks to participate?’”

Every student has a responsibility to their community, and LiveSafe gives students a tool to actively collaborate with UTPD to help create a safer campus. LiveSafe was made for students, so community engagement is crucial to the app’s success as a student safety resource. If students want to achieve a safer campus, then their first move should be using LiveSafe. 

Monday is a Plan II and health and society freshman from Houston, Texas.