When unruly students made loud noises and acted obnoxiously outside her dorm at 4 a.m. last semester, April Morrow didn't know if she could count on University Police Services to help her.

But now that Morrow (sophomore-nursing) has witnessed the University police in action, she knows she can feel safe. She said officers quickly drove away the students from her dorm after she called for assistance.

"They were there when I needed them," Morrow said. "The police were willing to work with me."

For the police, public service is just part of the job description. But some students fail to realize that, and relations between the two groups are sometimes strained.

"They don't really have an understanding of what police do," said David Caster, community relations and crime prevention specialist for the State College Police Department.

"Any time a police officer does something, there's a certain amount of danger involved," he said. "You never know what's going to happen.

"It can happen in a heartbeat. You can stop the wrong car at any time," he said.

Caster, who is a State College police veteran of 15 years, said the battle to defeat misconceptions is a long-term learning process. Nevertheless, he said relations here between students and police are excellent.

Luis Fernandez (junior-chemical engineering) said his experiences with local police have been positive. He praised their efforts to thwart crime and maintain safety.

"Police have to do their job. They have to keep the security here," Fernandez said. But sometimes police have a tendency to overreact, he added.

"In simple situations, they take it to some proportions that are not necessary," Fernandez said. He cited the 1992 boycott at McDonald's Restaurant, 442 E. College Ave., as an example when police reacted too strongly.

In that incident, students protested what they perceived to be excessive police presence on weekend nights when the restaurant was frequented by black patrons.

Fernandez said greater awareness and understanding by police resulted from the McDonald's incident, prompting better relations between students and police today.

State College Borough Council President Jean McManis agreed that the McDonald's incident --which she called a low point in student-police relations -- was an important learning experience for all involved.

"I never would have guessed how misunderstood the police role in that incident was if I hadn't heard those students," McManis said. "Communication is the key."

University Police Services Officer Don Reed said some students think negatively of the police and express those feelings, but added that they are the exception, not the rule.

McManis said past community efforts to bring together students and borough groups have done a lot to foster better relations and to increase communal spirit. She encouraged student leaders to make strong efforts to communicate with police and express their ideas and concerns.

"So many of us don't understand what the other's problems or responsibilities or assignments really are," she said.

Reed said minor incidents, such as parking tickets or bicycle violations, may tend to give students bad impressions of law-enforcement officials.

"Nobody really likes to give anybody a ticket or arrest anybody unless they think it's justified," he said. But officers are able to use their discretion and issue only warnings if offenses are not blatant, he added.

Both Reed and Caster cited several police-sponsored programs as successful tools to advance relations between students and police.

Among those mentioned were alcohol-awareness workshops, theft-prevention programs, research-project assistance and informal meetings between officers and various groups or fraternities.