In a TSL survey, 84.4 percent of responding first-year students at Pomona College expressed support for increasing security initiatives on campus after an unauthorized man was reportedly found masturbating and trespassing in a gender-neutral bathroom at Lyon Court residence hall on Feb. 2.
Some Lyon residents say that similar incidents have occurred in the past, raising concerns that have only escalated following the most recent trespassing.
TSL’s survey, which garnered approximately 50 responses, asked Pomona first-years to rate their sense of safety following the Lyon incident on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the safest and 5 being the most unsafe. The results indicated some concern among students, with an average safety rating of 2.8 out of 5.
Despite a thorough search, Campus Safety was unable to identify the unauthorized individual, according to a representative in a Feb. 11 email to TSL.
“While it is unclear how this individual entered the building, our officers continue to check that all doors are securely closed and locked at night,” the email stated. “Any issues, such as broken locks, are promptly shared with the facilities team for repair.”
Survey results demonstrated that students remained dissatisfied with the level of safety on campus; 75.5 percent of respondents rated their satisfaction with the college’s actions between 1 and 3 on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 being extremely dissatisfied.
Following the incident, Lyon residents requested the installation of new self-closing doors and inspections of the lounge doors, according to an email to TSL from Josh Eisenberg, associate dean of students and dean of campus life at Pomona. The email stated that the doors were permanently locked on Feb. 10.
Sarah Russo PO ’28 said her room was broken into last semester over fall break. Russo said she reported the incident to campus security, but that the person was not identified. Additionally, she noted that a different individual repeatedly used a Lyon bathroom over the course of a week or two last semester before eventually being escorted out.
Similarly, Emmet Bolls PO ’28 said that he saw a trespasser, appearing to be in their 30s or 40s, in the Lyon laundry room earlier this semester. He said the individual was escorted out. In response to safety concerns, Bolls said he and his roommate have become more cautious.
“If one of us isn’t there, we lock the door, which is something we weren’t really thinking about first semester,” Bolls said.
Russo said Pomona first-year students have repeatedly called for action from Campus Safety, the Housing and Residence Life Office and even the Claremont Police Department. She said that despite their efforts, there has been little progress until now.
“Living in Lyon has become an experience of perpetual vigilance,” Russo wrote in an opinion for TSL advocating for a more proactive approach to campus security. “Residents are constantly aware of their surroundings, check and recheck locks and feel uncomfortable when strangers walk by.”
Russo said she thinks many of the incidents have occurred in Lyon because of its proximity to the Claremont Village and how it seems to be the easiest to navigate of the first-year dorms.
In a meeting between Russo, Eisenberg and Assistant Director of Residence Life Ryan Haynes, Russo said they discussed potential future security measures including the installation of security cameras and additional lighting.
Russo said she is happy with the changes that are now being made.
“I feel a lot more satisfied than I did even a week ago and obviously right when my room was broken into, given I felt like I was left in the dark,” Russo said. “I do appreciate the change being made and the discussions that are happening. I just wish it didn’t take this long.”
Anya Offenbacher-Jones PO ’28, a Lyon resident, claimed the incident heightened her sense of fear.
“I’m more aware when I’m out and about, especially late at night,” Jones said. “My roommates and I have talked about locking our doors now, which we never thought about before the incident.”
The school followed up with a response: Eisenberg provided a long list of measures post-incident in an email released to Pomona’s South Campus Community on Feb. 6. TSL’s survey also asked about potential security enhancements, such as installing security cameras by the entrance of Lyon and South Campus.
71.8 percent of first-year survey participants indicated they supported the installation of security cameras on South Campus dorms. 84.8 percent of respondents showed support for some form of increase in security infrastructure.
The survey also received several concerns, recommendations and possible solutions to increase the security of dorms around campus.
Russo said that she liked Scripps College’s two-time free lockout policy, which allows students two free lockouts per year —for their third, all key services cost $25. She said that initiatives like these would allow students to feel more comfortable about locking their doors every time they exit the room, as some currently leave doors unlocked on purpose due to a fear of losing their key or getting locked out.
In addition to security cameras, students also indicated a desire to see more emergency call stations as well as a centralized system or mobile application to report all crimes to Campus Safety.
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