Security system installation company Integrated Security Group installed five new security cameras on campus around North College and Boger Hall on Sept. 18. These new cameras include an Alta H5A multisensor camera made by Avigilon and four Axis M43 Panoramic Cameras made by Axis Communications, which offer AI-guided visual and audio analysis and technologies such as crowd tracking and automated motion detection.

The administration cited the need to update campus security infrastructure to better address crime and vandalism on campus. It has also stressed that it has not put any of the aforementioned software technologies into use. 

“While this [renovation] included new security cameras, the University did not purchase a license for auto-detection or sound recording features,” the University wrote in a statement to The Argus.

Students and campus community members who observed the installation took notice of the accompanying packaging for the new cameras, and many have raised concern about the capabilities of the new devices and the extent to which the University is monitoring students. 

“The University has recently installed updated security equipment on campus as part of its year-long assessment of aging infrastructure, and in response to recent incidents of vandalism,” the University wrote. 

These new surveillance cameras, according to the Office of Public Safety (PSafe), are intended to enhance security, deter crime, and protect the safety of community members and property. The location of all new cameras are reserved to places that are deemed to adhere to the University’s expectations of privacy.

“Wesleyan University is committed to providing a safe campus environment for the students, faculty, staff and guests of our community,” the PSafe camera and voice recording guidelines state. “The use of surveillance cameras for monitoring or recording [will] be used in a professional, ethical, and legal manner.”

Prior to new on-campus camera installations, the University requires advanced approval from the appropriate administrators. All cameras require approval by the Director of Public Safety, currently Scott Rohde, and any camera with a projected view of a residential hall or space must be approved by the Vice President for Student Affairs Michael Whaley. According to PSafe guidelines, cameras cannot be installed in areas with a view of private bedrooms, bathrooms, locker room dressing and shower areas, or private offices.

Only PSafe personnel, and those approved by PSafe, may receive access to surveillance recordings. This approval process may also include input from the Middletown Office of General Counsel—which serves as the risk management, human resources, and legal body of the town—and the University’s Vice President of Student Affairs. 

The length of the retention period for surveillance recordings is at the University’s discretion, as is the use of information obtained by use of the recordings. 

“Footage obtained through surveillance monitoring or recording will be retained for a length of time deemed appropriate for the purpose of monitoring,” the guidelines continue. “Some footage may have historical value or may be used for a criminal and/or judicial investigation in accordance with university policy.” 

Though the administration purports that cameras are not monitored in real time, this is not a guarantee; the University reserves the right to monitor cameras 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at their discretion. 

It is unclear whether or not this policy is implemented in practice. University President Michael Roth ’78 rejected the notion that PSafe was participating in live monitoring of camera footage. 

“We wanted to be able to check the cameras when there’s a crime, but we’re not monitoring in real time or anything,” President Michael Roth ’78 said. “We don’t have the capacity, and we don’t save [the information] after a couple of days because we don’t want to pay for storage.”

The new camera installation has coincided with a surge of activism on campus, as student groups mobilize in solidarity with Palestine amidst the ongoing war in the Middle East. Organizations such as Wesleyan Students for Justice and Palestine established the Wesleyan Palestine Solidarity Encampment, and students representing Beyond Empire participated in a sit-in in North College demanding for divestment from Israeli companies, and the Committee for Investor Responsibility outlined a divestment proposal that was rejected by the University’s board of trustees.  

According to the administration, vandalism—such as the graffitiing of Olin Library—drove administrators to revise security infrastructure on campus, and improve their security monitoring systems. The University hopes that cameras will both deter future defacement of University buildings and property and help with the identification of perpetrators.

“We had some vandalism during the encampment and some threats that went along with the vandalism that were disturbing,” Roth said. “Over the years, when something happens, like a crime, [we] look at a camera…. The decision [here] was to just get better cameras.”

While debates over the reach and efficacy of campus audio and visual recording devices have continued for at least a decade, recent anxieties over campus crime have also helped motivate the recent renovations. Recent incidents include an attempted break-in on Pine Street, a successful burglary at Low Rise, a harassment case on Church Street, a break-in at Bennet Hall, and an identified trespasser at Olin Library, all during the first month of the 2024–2025 school year.

“When we have an incident on campus—when somebody breaks into a room, or there’s a sexual assault, or a stolen bike, or car—the first question the victim asks us is, ‘check the cameras,’” Roth said.  

Although these recent acts of vandalism played a part, representatives of the administration emphasized that the largest incentive behind the new installations were routine renovations, and that North College and Boger Hall are not the only campus buildings with security cameras. Some that have been installed previously were placed in locations such as the Usdan University Center, Low Rise, Exley Science Center, and the PSafe building on High Street. The newly renovated Frank Center for Public Affairs is also outfitted with a Unity H5A multisensor camera, a version of the Alta with less capability. 

“As is standard, security cameras are installed regularly in all new construction and renovations and are retrofitted into existing buildings,” the University wrote. 

Ultimately, the extent to which the University is utilizing the new camera capabilities is unclear, but the administration maintains that the purpose of the new installations is solely to promote a safer campus. 

“[Now] when there’s a crime, we can say, ‘Oh, you know, there’s Johnny,’” Roth said. “So that’s the goal…it’s just a way of tracking crime if it happens.”

Carolyn Neugarten can be reached at cneugarten@wesleyan.edu.

Miles Craven can be reached at mcraven@wesleyan.edu.