The Leader

Issue date: 11/8/06 Section: News

As of last week, Be On the Safe Side (B.O.S.S.) has a debt of about $106,000, which is less than half the debt it was facing last year.

The Leader reported in an Oct. issue last year of B.O.S.S.'s $225,000 debt. But things are looking up for UWM's free nighttime escort service since they have cut that debt in half.

B.O.S.S. is currently headed in the right direction. They added one more van this year, so they now have nine vans. Also this year they were able to add one more hour onto their service, making running time from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.

B.O.S.S. Director Courtney Gotz said they operated as bare as they could in order to cut back on costs. They did not buy new shirts, scaled back hours and reduced vans. He said that is both good and bad.

"Good in that it got the numbers back on track, but not providing the top level of service," he said.

Gotz said that he knew going into last year that it was going to be a terrible year, but also that if they made it through, they would be able to work on bringing their services back.

B.O.S.S. is funded entirely by student-segregated fees and they got an increase, which means they get $9.50 per student. Gotz said that is a major reason that expansions occurred this year.

Being so far in debt, there was no money for advertising. Gotz said he has some money set aside for advertising this year, but it will have to be used wisely as it is not much. B.O.S.S. has an advantage, though, since a lot of their advertising they do not pay for.

"Our vans are advertising in itself," Gotz said.

Students will sometimes be taken past the B.O.S.S. office during orientations, which promotes the service, but also promotes the safety of students.

Gotz said that the UWM Student Association was very much involved in the funding for B.O.S.S. this year and that they worked very hard to help last year.

"They've been great supporters of ours," he said. "They appreciate the work. I feel like they find it very valuable."

After this year, B.O.S.S.'s debt should be down to $30,000 or $40,000, according to Gotz. By early next year it should be gone he said.

Reducing services is not something that he likes to do, said Gotz. But he appreciates the students that have been patient with the changes.

"We're doing our best to get back on track," he said.

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