Editor’s Note: As of 3:10 p.m. on Nov. 11 the LVT camera has been removed from outside Howe Library and this story has been updated. This story has been updated again with comment from the University at 4:17 p.m. on Nov. 11.
A LiveView Technologies Solar Security Camera installed during the pro-Palestine encampment in April remained in front of Howe Library until its removal on Nov. 11, despite the encampment having dispersed months ago.
Michael Schirling, UVM’s chief safety and compliance officer, declined to answer questions on the record last week regarding why the LVT camera and barriers were still in place until now. He gave no indication of a removal plan for the LVT camera.
“As a rule we do not discuss detailed security planning measures publicly,” Schirling said in a Nov. 6 emailed statement to the Cynic. “Any time there is information the campus community needs to enhance safety and security or to take specific action, we provide that over multiple communication channels.”
Adam White, executive director of university communications, provided a statement on the LVT camera’s move in a Nov. 11 email to the Cynic, but did not indicate where the camera was moved to or when.
“The camera array is moved periodically so that it can best serve its purpose within our campus safety strategy,” he said.
The LVT camera was installed on April 29 by UVM police in between Howe Library and the Andrew Harris green, according to an April 29 live update by the Cynic. The goal of the camera was to add a layer of surveillance that could help an investigation in the case of an incident, said Jason Lawson, deputy chief of UVM Police, in the article.
“This tool, it just provides safety for everyone in the area,” Lawson said. “So if something happened, it would give us an opportunity to try to follow up with some source of material that could provide better avenues of trying to investigate what happened.”
Schirling gave a virtual presentation on Aug. 28 in which he discussed campus and community safety procedures. While the presentation covered general information, the University does not provide specific detail regarding security measures that could create or enhance hazards rather than mitigate them, Schirling said in a Nov. 8 emailed statement to the Cynic.
“We do not provide details regarding specific security measures or planning, including but not limited to, where and when and why particular pieces of technology are deployed temporarily, though the when and where of measures are sometimes visually obvious,” Schirling said.
