As the recipient of a tuition, room, and board scholarship, I can't complain about much at Morehouse, despite its numerous shortcomings. Nonetheless, I generally do not have the highest expectations of this college anyway.
One of the few things I pay for is my parking permit–$200 for the fall semester, and what do I get for it? Apparently nothing! Any idiot can (and does) get free parking in the deck if he simply lifts up the gate on his way out. At least, that is what I thought before doing any further research.
After talking to Morehouse parking manager Keith Terrell about the aforementioned problem, I was elated to hear that there were consequences for parking thieves. And that's just what they are, thieves.
I can see the multitude of security cameras that are mounted facing the exit of the parking deck, but before my talk with Mr. Terrell, I wondered if they really did anything; it certainly doesn't seem so. So many people simply ignore the cameras and lift up the gate anyway. However, I discovered that the cameras do actually work and people are caught stealing.
According to Mr. Terrell, about half of the people who lift the gates to escape their parking fees are later caught, booted, and penalized $25. This fine may seem insignificant at first, but considering the price of getting caught, thieves are better off paying for a parking permit.
The gates can stay up after being tampered with and are usually not lowered until an attendant comes at 8 am. Because of the amount of time the gates stay up, the loss realized by the college and its permit holders is significantly greater.
Given the limits of video resolution, the current camera system works well. There are plans in place to replace the current cameras with higher resolution ones when construction begins on the new parking deck. A sooner improvement will be student participation in reporting theft and other misuse of parking privileges, Even reporting the time of the crime without even as much as a license number could be helpful.
While I loath to suggest snitching, it's my parking that is on the line. I am the victim, so go on and snitch the night away. After all, if your home was broken into and your neighbors witnessed the whole thing, you would probably want them to call the police. It's the brotherly thing to do.
