ORL, Housing look to discourage recent Hill vandalism

An increase in acts of vandalism on the Hill in recent weeks has
the UCLA Housing Administration and the Office of Residential Life
staff exploring various ways to discourage such behavior in the
residence halls.

Vandalism across the Hill has included the destruction and theft
of exit signs, holes punched and kicked into walls, missing fire
extinguishers and broken fire extinguisher closets.

The latest incident happened last week when two fire
extinguishers were set off in Hedrick Summit.

Alfred Nam, associate director of rooms for Housing, said
Housing is now increasing efforts to prevent and limit such acts
from occurring.

“We’re working with (ORL) to talk to the residents
of each community to work with us to minimize this activity,”
Nam said.

According to an e-mail sent out by Hedrick Summit Resident
Director Bridget Le Loup to all Hedrick Summit residents, ORL staff
in the building are instituting a building-wide “community
watch” where students are encouraged to report any violations
they see to an ORL staff member.

Tampering with fire and safety equipment, theft or damage to
individuals’ or university property and repeated violation of
regulations could result in exclusion from Housing, according to
the On-Campus Housing Student Handbook.

“There is no pattern to the acts of vandalism and it is
not known what is causing such behavior,” Nam said.

Nam said Housing is doing what it can to control such behavior
by increasing patrols by Housing and ORL staff in the dorms and by
encouraging housekeeping and other staff to be more aware of any
possible problems or acts of vandalism in the residence halls.

The most recent incident of vandalism occurred in Hedrick Summit
on the night of March 9 when two fire extinguishers were set off in
the 8th-floor west lounge and in the north stairwell, causing the
fire alarm to be set off at approximately 1:45 a.m., Le Loup
said.

Le Loup said residents on the first seven floors were able to
return to their rooms after about half an hour but residents on the
8th and 9th floors had to wait until about 3 a.m. because Housing
had to wait until all particles from the fire-extinguisher residue
settled before the alarm could be reset.

No one has been found responsible for the vandalism in the
lounge, Le Loup said.

Some Hedrick Summit residents said the vandalism is due to a
rivalry between two of the floors.

Gabrielle Mirsaidi, a third-year international development
studies student and resident of Hedrick Summit, said the vandalism
with the fire extinguishers is the latest act attributed to a
rivalry between the sixth and eighth floors that started last
quarter.

“For the most part, Hedrick Summit is a great place to
live because it is a community of older students ““ mostly
transfers and returning students ““ but it is the act of a few
… that ruins it all,” Mirsaidi said.

Le Loup said the rivalry between the two floors is not a
destructive one, but rather a healthy one.

She said the 6th and 8th floors have competed in the College
Bowl as well as a Summit Karaoke night, which have contributed to
the rivalry.

According to Le Loup’s e-mail, “there has been an
increase in the amount of vandalism and destruction of property,
noise violations and an overall decline in the academic climate of
the areas of the residential community in (Hedrick)
Summit.”

But LeLoup said the amount of vandalism that has occurred in
Hedrick Summit is no different than that which has occurred in
other residence halls.