When Students Spoke Up Against Campus Police Patrols, Pt. 2

The following are part of the collection of 7 of the letters written by students to the Bethel Board of Directors on September 30th, 2024, to be published on Survival. Click here to learn more and to read part 1, published last week.

North Newton Police Patrols on Campus

Members of the Bethel Board of Directors,

My name is Diego ——— and I am a freshman pre-med major on a music scholarship. I am the fifth generation in my family to attend Bethel. I am of Mennonite and Guatemalan heritage. I decided to attend Bethel because historically its values have aligned with my own. With the introduction of police on campus this is no longer true. Police are a direct contradiction to the values I believed Bethel stood for. This is because the police represent and are part of a violent, oppressive institution that historically has been intolerant of people like me.

There are better and more effective ways to make campus safer such as better lighting, more security cameras, and better communication.

Thank you for your time.

Police on Campus

My name is Jordan and I’m a senior from Gardner, Kansas. I play volleyball at Bethel College and I am also a psychology major. I’m writing because I am concerned about the North Newton police patrols at Bethel because I am uncomfortable. No one was made aware of the police until they showed up. I believe that there are other ways to make Bethel a safer and stronger community, including better communication about risks and threats.

Thank you for your time,

Jordan ———

Bethel College and Police on Campus

Dear Bethel Board of Directors,

I am a senior at Bethel College. I am a history major with a minor in biology. I am from Manhattan, KS and I grew up in the Mennonite church.

The Bethel Administration has invited the North Newton Police department to patrol our campus and this makes me feel uncomfortable. I see Bethel as my home and having armed police that are able to walk within buildings and around campus makes me feel less safe. Since I am a Mennonite, this especially makes me upset.

I agree that safety and security are very important, and as a woman especially, but I feel as though there are different ways to achieve this goal. I would love to see increased lighting and more cameras, or even a private security like Goshen College has. I agree that police should be able to come onto campus as they are needed but having police roam our campus as they have the time doesn’t meet any of my security wants or needs.

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Tara ———