BEN DAVIDOFF

Craig Haubrich, candidate for UA Escort Service Director, and ASUA Administrative Vice President Tricia Williams describe new procedures relating to the everyday operation of the UA campus escort service. The escort service is a free transportation service offered to students Sunday through Thursday from 6:45 p.m. until 12:55 a.m.

Tuesday September 4, 2001

Service begins running tonight under new leadership

The UA Escort Service, which begins running tonight, will learn tomorrow whether its interim director will continue his leadership of the program.

ASUA senators will vote tomorrow to appoint Craig Haubrich as permanent director of the service, which transports students around campus after dark.

Haubrich said it is critical to improve dispatch, maintain vehicles more effectively and decrease response times within the Escort Service.

Tricia Williams, Associated Students of the University of Arizona administrative vice president, agreed wait times need to be reduced.

"If you have a 10-minute wait, you're not helping campus safety," she said. "The wait needs to be 5 minutes or less."

Haubrich, a marketing senior who worked for the service his freshman and sophomore years, plans to run the escort service more like a business by watching funds and working with sponsors.

"I want to look at the whole picture, not necessarily making cuts in the budget, but not using funds as liberally as we have in the past," he said.

Williams said Haubrich's experience with corporate sponsors was one of the main reasons she hired him for the job.

Haubrich also served as public relations director for the 1999 Spring Fling and as executive director for the 2000 event.

"I'm very familiar with ASUA and all the programs up here," he said.

Some ASUA senators plan to push for extending the service's hours of operation.

Haubrich said he is not opposed to the idea but needs to see more evidence that it needs to be done before he pushes the issue.

"The research on (the senators') end hasn't really been done to ensure whether or not we can expand the service," he said. "The University of Arizona Department of Risk Management is the one who dictates (extending hours of operation), so basically it's a matter of what they say is possible and what they say is not possible. It's my understanding - although I have not talked to them directly - that it is not possible."

Williams said she does not see an overwhelming need to extend hours, citing that calls drop significantly after midnight, and the service already runs until nearly 1 a.m.

Haubrich said local businesses will be sought after to sponsor the service through donations and advertising.

He and Williams agreed that the Escort Service's funding for this year, which is $7,000 less than last year, would not create a problem in how things are run.

The Escort Service plans to continue hiring students throughout the semester, and Haubrich plans to purchase a new car or van sometime soon.

"I notice that there is a need for some changes, and (I want to) try to make some things more efficient, and I think I have what it takes to make those changes," he said.

Students can call 621-SAFE for a safe ride beginning at 6:45 p.m.