Campus safety and Carleton’s department of housing have started a new “positive” ticketing program, with the goal of creating a positive atmosphere on campus.
The project involves campus safety officers and residence fellows handing out “positive tickets,” which are redeemable vouchers for Tim Hortons gift cards. These tickets, purchased by the housing department, are handed out to residence students who are seen doing simple acts of kindness within the community, according to Mark Hargreaves, safety’s community liaison officer.
Hargreaves said the idea was born during summer 2013. He said university safety and the housing department created a committee “to discuss different projects and initiatives to create positive interactions between students in residence and our campus safety officers.”
“We give them out for simple acts such as turning in a lost item or holding a door for someone,” he said.
Residence programs and training co-ordinator Laurie Shea said they wanted to reward students.
“As opposed to focusing on what people are doing wrong, we wanted to focus on people doing things right,” she said.
Shea said residence launched the program in early October. Residence fellows were given a number of vouchers to hand out to students seen doing good things.
These include helping peers with homework, assisting res fellows with community and floor activities, helping other students when they are sick, and other more simple acts like maintaining a positive attitude and building friendships within the community, according to Shea.
Shea said there was even a ticket given out to a student who refused to give alcohol to a minor.
Safety launched their portion of the program Nov. 18 and, according to Hargreaves, it has been a great success so far.
While it is just for students living in residence at this time, Hargreaves said they are not opposed to the program being done on a wider scale.
