With thousands of students and hundreds of alumni looking to take a weekend off from schoolwork and jobs to party, Homecoming is the busiest weekend of the fall for Safety and Security and Hanover Police. With this in mind, both organizations are making special preparations.
College Proctor Harry Kinne said that Safety and Security will take on extra staff over the weekend to prepare for the festivities and the influx of people to campus.
Kinne said that his organization has been meeting with the Bonfire Committee, Hanover Police and the Fire Department for a long time to discuss preparation for the party weekend. He indicated that even though Safety and Security does not formally coordinate a Homecoming plan with Hanover Police, they "make them aware of what is going on around campus."
According to Kinne, Hanover Police will be "in the thick of things, too."
To maintain a presence on campus during the big weekend, Hanover Police also has to rely on extra staffing.
"We do not usually have enough personnel in house," Hanover Police Chief Nick Giacconne said. "We have to contact outside agencies to see what personnel they have available."
Giaconne said that the Hanover Police Department looks to nearby Lebanon, New London and Canaan for extra reserves.
"We'll be on the Green at bonfire," Giaconne said. "We'll have a command post for temporary detention."
According to Giaconne, Hanover Police officers have been instructed to detain any students that they see either naked or touching the bonfire. He said that detained students would then be charged with disorderly conduct.
"Our primary mission is to make the bonfire a safe event," he said.
There is a bit of uncertainty as to what will happen to students who attempt to touch the bonfire or run naked but are only spotted by Safety and Security, however.
"If S&S catches you, I would assume that the College would take some sort of action, which may be more significant to the student than what is done in court," Giaconne said.
Giaconne indicated that he did not expect Safety and Security to turn over all cases of bonfire-related disorderly conduct to the Hanover Police.
In fact, Kinne said that if students are detained at the bonfire only by Safety and Security, they might not be handed over to Hanover Police at all.
These students "are definitely subject to college discipline," he said. But Kinne admitted that "depending on the specific circumstance, they may or may not be turned over to Hanover Police."
Hanover Police and Safety and Security will also operate side by side at the Homecoming football.
"Hanover Police will be at the football game," said Kinne. "If students rush the field they will be subject to both S&S and Hanover Police action."
Both Kinne and Giaconne expressed similar expectations as to how much activity their organizations would see over the weekend.
"I would think that by virtue of how many more people there are on campus, there will be more referrals for violation of College policy," Kinne said.
Giaconne said that he expected a "slight increase" in police activity on campus.
Kinne said that his best advice to students looking to avoid becoming an Safety and Security or a Hanover Police statistic is to be aware Homecoming weekend is very much a typical weekend.
"Certainly students during Homecoming are very much part of Dartmouth and the Hanover community," Kinne said. "The laws of Dartmouth and New Hampshire still apply this weekend."