Ohio University buildings might be a little more secure if the OU Police Department receives approval to train OU students to be security guards.

In conjunction with OU's facilities planning department, the OUPD submitted a proposal that would allow officers to train students as security guards for campus buildings, Ted Jones, director of campus safety, said.

Although officers continually patrol the campus, Jones said he feels campus buildings sometimes need the presence of a trained professional.

Buildings such as Seigfred Hall, which frequently has students working late at night, need more protection from theft and vandalism, he said.

"The notion of building security goes beyond the protection of people," Jones said.

If the proposal is approved, OUPD officers trained to teach security procedures would develop a curriculum for students.

Last year, more than $19,000 worth of property was reported stolen from campus buildings, Jones said. That number was a decrease from 1997, when more than $31,800 was reported stolen from campus buildings.

Jones said he will not know if the proposal is approved until Spring Quarter.

Until then, a variety of security options are used to keep campus theft down, he said.

Some buildings on campus are electronically monitored, such as the Kennedy Museum at The Ridges, Jones said.

Other buildings, such as Alden Library and the computer labs, are partially monitored by electronic systems, he said.

They also are kept locked through the night, Sherwood Wilson, director of facilities management, said.Alden Library is the only building on campus with a professional security guard, Wilson said.

A full-time security guard patrols floors from Sunday through Thursday to check the safety of the building, Gary A. Hunt, associate dean of libraries, said.

Inside the residence halls, the most common security problem is theft, especially textbooks, which normally are stolen at the end of the quarter, said Joseph Burke, OU director of residence life.

Despite some theft problems, many students living on campus said they feel safe inside their dorm rooms.

In a 1998 Community Life Assessment survey conducted by the Department of Residence Life, 96 percent of the students who returned the survey felt safe in their residence hall.

LeighAnne DeWine, a sophomore in Dougan Hall on South Green, said she is "definitely comfortable" with the security in her hall.

"I don't feel unsafe, and I trust everyone there," DeWine said.

To keep residence halls safe, about 24 student security aides patrol the East, West, and South greens from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, Burke said.

Resident Assistants also will lock all residence hall doors at night and will patrol inside the building to ensure the safety of the students, said Peter Russell, an administrative resident assistant for Scott Quadrangle.

"What we are watching for is not to see who is drinking or getting in trouble, but to make sure that someone is not being hurt or hurting themselves," Russell said.