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Howard has worked for Safety and Security since she was a student at Hamline. She took a few years off to explore other options, but is once again a familiar face around the Safety and Security office.

According to Howard, the office has “professionalized” since her days as a student worker. For instance, students used to do the nightly patrols of the buildings. This involved the students having keys to buildings and offices, which made some professors nervous.

Another upgrade to the office is the newly acquired Blackberry device. This recent Safety and Security investment is mainly used for parking enforcement. It allows the officers to access the Banner computer system from anywhere. The Banner system stores all the information on every permit and vehicle, including every warning, ticket or other parking violation the car has had. If need be, they can access the state database from the device.

The majority of the violations thus far have resulted only in warnings. Writing them takes up more time than any other task, but Howard does not mind her job. Despite what some students may believe, the officers that enforce parking are not out to ‘get’ anyone. “Our goal is not to ruin anyone’s day,” Howard said, “my motivation is fairness.”

According to Howard, the parking policy changes have made enforcement easier. One of these changes is the new variety of colors for the permits. For example, students who live in the apartments have different colored permits for their lot than students who live in residence halls. Faculty and staff have different colors than students, and the colors are all different from the yellow of last year’s permits. Officers can see with a simple glance whether the permits are valid for the lot they are in. If a permit is yellow, she said, “it’s a dead giveaway.”

These permits allow parking in all Hamline lots except visitor parking, as well as the Hamline Methodist church parking lot. The church parking lot is rented by Hamline during the week and is comprised mainly of reserved spots.

Howard said two tickets will be given before a towing notification is given. Hamline charges a $25 fee for towing added to the almost $250 towing fee from the company.

One point Howard emphasized is that the Safety and Security office realizes that everyone makes an honest mistake once in a while. She said they also realize that situations come up that people do not expect.

Special circumstances can be taken into account and accommodations can be made, but the office must be notified in advance to prevent tickets or towing.

And for anyone who was wondering, the answer is no, Safety and Security officers do not have tasers. “We are not cops, we do not carry weapons,” said Howard. “But,” she jokingly added, “we do have really big flashlights.”