By: Kyla Wetmore
As spring thaws out Southern’s campus, many students studying or hanging out with friends at the outdoor patio between the Bietz Center for Student Life and McKee Library are unaware that anyone with an internet connection could be quietly watching.
This view of campus life is publicly available on the Campus Webcams page of Southern’s website. It features live webcams at two sites on campus: a blurry view at the center of campus and a clearer view showing the side of Bietz, including its patio, parking lots and part of the Thatcher dormitory.
The webcams can be controlled by one online user at a time, who can pan, tilt and zoom in and out. During an interview with the Accent, one student experimented with the cameras, and found that they could zoom in close enough to see the person she was talking to on FaceTime on her phone.
Janell Hullquist, director of Marketing and University Relations (MUR), stated in an email to the Accent that the webcams have been available for many years, with the current system replacing older cameras in 2016. The camera facing Bietz used to face the Promenade but was shifted to view the Bietz’ construction, according to Hullquist.
She explained that the university placed the webcams with the goal of providing a live view of campus life and intentionally positioned them to show public areas instead of private spaces.
“They offer prospective students and families, alumni and friends of the university an authentic sense of our campus environment, seasonal conditions and daily atmosphere—especially for those who are unable to visit in person,” Hullquist stated, adding later that she is unaware of any reference to the cameras in the campus policies or student handbook.
Hullquist further explained that the webcams are among several visual engagement tools, such as campus tours, photography and videography, and can help people check current weather and campus conditions. The pan, tilt and zoom capabilities were an intentional feature to encourage engagement.
According to Hullquist, MUR has not received any notable feedback about the cameras since their installation.
Nationally, Southern is not the only university to feature public livestreams of its campus for alumni, parents and prospective students.
According to a 2014 article by College Today, the news site for the College of Charleston in South Carolina, the campus featured eight webcams, which were first installed in 2007. Today, the school only features two live YouTube videos of the campus skylines.
Another article published in 2007 by the Reveille, Louisiana State University’s student media outlet, critically described four cameras that captured students on campus. It stated that screenshots of women visiting the library were posted on a message board, which reinforced the author’s privacy concerns. Now, its only live public camera shows the university’s live tiger mascot on the LiveBeaches.com website.
According to an article by the Campus Times, the student paper for the University of Rochester, the campus webcams trend of the 1990s and early 2000s is fading. While the popularity of these webcams may be one reason for their demise, some students have also spoken out against the cameras due to safety and privacy concerns.
In November 2022, students from Indiana University of Pennsylvania spoke out against a livestreaming camera on their campus, citing the potential misuse of the cameras in stalking scenarios, according to the Penn, the university’s student newspaper. While many of the students involved in its Student Governance Alliance had never heard of the camera, the livestream gained 56,000 views. Because of the public nature of the livestream, students felt that the cameras should be removed. Today, the Indiana University of Pennsylvania does not provide a publicly available webcam on its website.
The Accent sent an email about the webcams to Shawn Haas, associate director of Campus Safety, who said that the livestreams raised questions about safety. Haas stated in a later email that he would make a recommendation to Southern’s administration for the webcams to be evaluated and either taken down, adjusted or relocated as appropriate.
He also made a distinction between the safety of the Bietz webcam and the center campus webcam.
“One key concern is the difference between camera positioning and capability,” Haas stated in an email to the Accent. “For example, the center pole camera is farther away and captures only a general area, which is not comparable to the Student Center camera when discussing safety concerns. The camera facing the Student Center is much closer and can be zoomed in sufficiently to clearly show individuals and make them easily identifiable.”
Haas said he had been in favor of using webcams to give viewers the ability to see the construction process before the student center opened in 2021. However, he questioned their usefulness now.
“I would just say for [the Bietz webcam] that I don’t see a purpose,” Haas said. “The ability to zoom in and change directions seems like [it brings] the unwanted potential for misuse. We have no proof or anything, no report. But why leave that potential out there?”
Student Reactions
Students had mixed reactions to finding out about the webcams. Some appreciated the webcams’ availability, although they were unfamiliar with the cameras before speaking to the Accent. Fran Cordero Arias, a freshman business administration major, expressed positivity towards the webcams.
“I feel like it’s a good thing so that students can see a little bit of what the campus looks like,” Cordero Arias said.
Freshman nursing major Sophie Cirigliano sat at a table on the patio as she studied for a nutrition exam and commented on the usefulness of the cameras.
“I feel like it could be helpful in certain situations,” Cirigliano said. “Maybe if you lost something or left something at the table, [you could see] where it is. I feel like it could be beneficial.”
Other students shared their discomfort with the cameras.
Tristan Kirstein, a freshman business administration major, and Pablo Balboa, freshman biology major, worked at their laptops on the patio. Both students did not know that they could be watched online as they studied.
At first, they said the cameras were cool, but after further reflection, they felt uncomfortable with the availability of the cameras to the public.
“It’s kind of weird that anyone in the whole planet, could just look up ‘campus webcams at Southern Adventist University’ on their at-home computer and just, I don’t know, look at whoever,” Kirstein said. “It’s kind of just a little creepy.”
Arianne Milosavljevic, a senior nursing major, was shocked to find out that the webcams were available and sees the cameras as a violation of privacy.
“If you’re going to [have publicly available cameras], have students know,” Milosavljevic said. “I’m sure there’s some terms and conditions, things that we signed that we didn’t know about, that were in there and we didn’t read about it. Still, that’s a bit unnerving.”
Nicole Mann, a sophomore allied health major, was unaware of the webcams and feels that they are a major safety concern.
“I feel like if anyone wanted to stalk you, they could easily do that,” Mann said. “I thought those cameras were for campus safety, you know, keeping our campus safe, but if people have internet access to you from anywhere, that doesn’t feel like it’s doing the job.”
Haas said Campus Safety offers many services if students have a stalking or harassment concern.
He also said that while the campus is fairly safe statistically, students who feel uncomfortable can call Campus Safety to request a safety escort, which can be as simple as a campus safety car and officer being in the parking lot while a student walks to their car at night.
Students can also report any safety concerns to Campus Safety. Haas said the department’s goal is to help students get the support they need, whether that involves the police or not.
“Campus Safety is here to help and assist, and we want students to feel like that’s the case,” he said. “And I know it can be kind of stressful and intimidating to report these things, so we train our officers to try to be able to take these reports in the best way possible and really to just focus on assisting.”
