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ORANGEBURG, S.C. – South Carolina State University and neighboring Claflin University have joined forces with local law enforcement agencies to establish a community policing substation adjacent to the SC State Campus.
Both the City of Orangeburg’s Department of Public Safety and the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office are partners with the two universities’ police departments in utilizing the joint substation to create more of a law enforcement presence in the areas near the two campuses.
“It is our belief that it takes a village to protect a village,” Dr. Frederick Evans, SC State provost and vice president for academic affairs, said Thursday in a news conference outside the substation. “And with this village with all of our university partners – here with Claflin University, the City of Orangeburg and the County of Orangeburg – we are certain that it will provide a much safer environment for all of our students.”
The substation sits at the corner of Goff Avenue and Buckley Streets – just down the street from SC State’s Buckley Street gate, which is immediately adjacent to SC State’s Hugine Suites residential complex.
Along with its proximity to the two campuses, the SC State-owned property is a prime location since it is in a neighborhood where students often lease residences. Students also have been known to hold off-campus social gatherings in the area without affiliation to either university.
“I believe this is a step in the right direction for us to bridge our gap between law enforcement and this community here,” SC State Police Chief Timothy Taylor said. “We call can come on one page to fight crime around Orangeburg, South Carolina.
“We will continue to build our relationships under my leadership, and we will grow stronger than ever here at South Carolina State,” Taylor said. “We will work together and share information with one another in this community with law enforcement to make this a better place.”
Along with being a crime deterrent because of the police presence, the substation is a place where students and members of the community have greater access to and can meet with law enforcement agents about their concerns. While the substation will be staffed at varied hours – not 24-7 -- all four agencies will use the facility for availability and outreach.
“For these students who live off campus, this will be more of a resource to them when they are not on campus if they have an emergency situation,” Taylor said, adding that SC State will place an emergency call box at the substation so that students and other residents in the neighborhood will have immediate access to safety assistance.
Taylor and Evans were joined in the news conference by Orangeburg City Administrator Sidney Evering, Orangeburg City Public Safety Chief Charles Austin, Orangeburg County Sheriff Leroy Ravenell and Claflin University Public Safety Director Melvin Williams, as well as other members of each agency.
“This is community policing in its purest form -- when we bring together the various resources that are available to us to a group of community,” Williams said. “So I expect that we will get some good results by virtue of this presence.”
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