Campus security guards emphasize confidentiality, respect when dealing with conflict

Brian+Hellwig%2C+Assistant+Director+of+Residential+Communities

Brian Hellwig, Assistant Director of Residential Communities

Leah Marxen

Security guards on Kent State’s campus are trained to keep incidents confidential, no matter the situation.

Jessica Chunat, a former student security guard worker, knows the significance of staying respectful when on duty.

“You have to maintain yourself in a professional manner,” Chunat said. “If you wouldn’t want that told about you, you wouldn’t tell that about someone else.”

Security guards on campus are trained to stay discreet for the best interest of the students.

“They are exposed to a lot of information that other students may not have access to or be aware of,” said Brian Hellwig, an assistant director in Residence Services who oversees safety and security. “They are expected to keep all that information confidential, just like the RAs are.”

Students may wonder why all situations remain confidential, when some situations could potentially affect them.

“We try to maintain that privacy when we can, but obviously if something happens where other students could be at risk, security needs to communicate with residence services,” Chunat said.

Residence Services, security and the Kent police department all work together when handling serious incidents on campus.

“If there are more serious incidents the police are involved. We work very closely with the police department,” Hellwig said. “So, if students did need to become aware of things that would come from the police department, not us.”

While this would only be applicable in very serious situations, security is continuously looking out for the students.

“You have to understand it’s a person and it’s a real life behind that incident, that stuff happens, but it’s not my place to tell everyone that it happened,” Chunat said.

Leah Marxen covers housing. Contact her at [email protected].