The Plainsman Press - South Plains College

The digital video recording system, which is basically a security system, was first installed about two or three years ago and has continued to be expanded each year. The system is from the Dedicated Micros Company and uses Digital Sprite equipment.

The system features 184 cameras that are set up in various places across SPC campuses, including Levelland, Plainview and Reese Center The cameras run 24 hours a day and are initiated by motion censors.

The system has a month to a month and a half of memory before it runs out of space and begins recording over.

“The system is a great tool,” said John Wuerflein, chief of police at SPC. “We’ve been able to solve a few thefts using the cameras, because we can always go back and look if there has been a disturbance and find out what really happened.”

Cameras are located in the Business Office, Office of Student Services, Student Center, the Admissions Office wing in the Student Services Building, Technical Arts, the Science and Biology buildings, PE Complex, Forrest Hall, Stroud Hall, Frazier Hall, Lamar Hall, Gillespie, South Sue and North Sue Spencer residence halls on the Levelland campus. Buildings 2, 3 and 8 on the Reese Center campus are equipped with cameras and the Plainview campus also has cameras at various locations. In the future there are plans to install cameras in other buildings, including Building 4 and Building 5 on the Reese campus and the Creative Arts Building on the Levelland campus.

“I would love to see every building and parking lot equipped with this system,” said Wuerflein. “It is a great asset and very well worth it.”

According to Wuerflein, two thefts have been solved in the Technology Center using the security cameras. Also, footage from the cameras have been used to solve thefts at the Reese Center campus, catching a thief who stole a DVD player from the college and another thief who stole a laptop computer.

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Science, Biology Faculty Selected for Title V Leadership Academy

by Giovanni Rosendo, associate editor

Selected faculty in the Science and Biology departments at South Plains College are preparing for the Title V 2006 Faculty Leadership Academy.

Title V grants are for Hispanic-serving institutions with at least 25 percent full time, low-income students. Acquiring Title V funding is a competitive process, including proposals from a multitude of colleges and universities. Out of the aspiring schools, only 20 or so are chosen to receive a five-year grant.

SPC achieved Title V status on Jan. 27, with the first year focusing on developmental math and the second focusing on college-level math. The third year’s focus is on science and biology. The fourth year is for English, and the fifth for behavioral and social sciences.

There was so much success in the first year of Title V that SPC has finished with the math emphasis and is now focusing on science with “Building Connections for Student Access and Academic Success.”

“We’re really wanting to expand access,” said Gail Platt, director of the Center for Teaching and Learning at SPC.