The University of Texas at Austin has extended its West Campus Ambassadors program to a second year and expanded its full scope of specialized safety, cleaning and hospitality services to cover a larger area. Today’s announcement follows a successful first year of operations for the team dedicated to revitalization of Austin’s West Campus neighborhood, which is home to more than 20,000 UT students each academic year and frequented by thousands of University employees and visitors.
Since beginning the program in August of 2023, the West Campus Ambassadors have:
- Escorted over 500 people safely throughout West Campus.
- Hauled away over 30,000 pounds of trash.
- Greeted and engaged with over 15,000 visitors.
- Removed over 2,000 pieces of graffiti.
During a news conference on The Drag, UT President Jay Hartzell outlined enhancements to the program for year two, including:
- Expanding the consistency and quality of safety and cleaning services across all the West Campus neighborhood, which is bounded by Lamar Boulevard, Guadalupe Street, 29th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
- Extending the services of the Safety Ambassadors to be available 24 hours a day Thursday through Sunday, in addition to 7 a.m. to 3:30 a.m. Monday through Wednesday.
- Increasing the Ambassadors team from 18 members to 30.
“This is a remarkable program with proven results, and we are excited to extend the West Campus Ambassadors for a second year,” said Hartzell. “This program is one of many at UT that prioritizes the safety of our students, faculty and staff, and we believe the enhancements will continue to bolster the neighborhood. Thank you to the chairman and the Board of Regents for their investment and the business and community leaders who support this effort.”
The University of Texas System Board of Regents allocated $8 million for improvements to the West Campus area in 2020. Since that time, UT has installed high-activity location observation (HALO) cameras, opened a UT Police Department satellite office, and significantly increased the presence of UTPD foot and bicycle patrols, which the school credits for a more visible law enforcement presence.
