Safety, always a prime issue in Undergraduate Student Government elections, is again a topic of discussion, but the focus seems to have shifted from campus to downtown safety.

During the past year, USG Vice President Heather Shore has worked with University Police Services and the Office of Physical Plant to increase the number of emergency phones and lights on campus.

But USG presidential candidate Erich May said the lack of lighting downtown now needs to be addressed. He said if elected, he would go to the State College Borough Council and convince them it is a town safety issue.

May, former USG Academic Assembly president, said increasing the Loop's service hours and expanding its route past Beaver Avenue would keep women from having to walk alone late at night.

USG presidential candidate and Senate President Mike King said the Town Loop cannot be extended because many town streets would need to be widened. He also advocates increasing downtown lighting.

USG President Chris Saunders agreed with King, saying the plan to extend the Town Loop is not feasible because of narrow streets and borough ordinances.

USG presidential candidate Matt Thomas said he would like to see free and expanded Weekend Loop service provided for safety reasons. He said a corporate sponsor would be one way to provide funding for the free service.

But USG presidential candidate Carina Defferrire said a bigger concern than lighting and phones is educating women on the dangers that exist for them at a large university like Penn State.

Defferrire, president of Latino Caucus, said as a resident assistant she met freshmen women who didn't understand the need to be careful about where they go and what they do.

"You could light up University Park like an airport, and it would not solve the majority of problems," said Defferrire's running mate Pat Scanlan.

Scanlan, former vice president of the Penn State University Veterans Organization, said it is up to organizations and people who organize social events to provide a safe environment for women at their parties.

King and his running mate Lori Pennay have raised the issue of "keeping campus rape trials and records closed to the media and general public."

Pennay (junior-speech communication) said the U.S. Department of Education is considering opening university campus records. The current policy is to keep these campus records private, King said.

King and Pennay think that if victims' names are released to the media, women may be more hesitant to come forward, and some people might be less likely to testify.

Scanlan disagreed with this point, saying it is wrong to keep these trials and records secret. He said the media will keep the victim's name private, and these issues should be out in the open for people to see what is going on.

But King defended his position and said he has been misrepresented.

"We don't want to change anything," he said. "We just want to keep the policy the way it is now."

Thomas (senior-journalism and English) also supports education of women as an important and effective way to cut down on violence against them. Most rapes occur at parties and women should be informed of the dangers, he said, adding, "I think more information needs to be out there."

The candidates are also addressing University minority issues, including recruitment, retention and communication between campus minority organizations and USG.

King said he would like to revive the Forum for Underrepresented Groups, a forum that existed several years ago and allowed minority groups to air concerns.

"We will try to build a strong, direct communication link with these groups," King said. "We can't pretend to best represent (minority) interests. They themselves can best represent their needs."

Thomas would like to work with the Alumni Association to send minority students back to their high schools and encourage students to come to the University.

Part of the retention problem can be solved with better advising during freshman orientation, he said. Better advising is part of Thomas' platform.

Defferrire said she plans to create a USG minority affairs department, which would deal with issues such as minority recruitment and retention. The department would also work with campus minority groups to hear their concerns.

May said USG has done a "miserable" job of dealing with minority organizations.

"If USG really understood other cultures and special needs, we would have no need for these groups," he said.

At the heart of the problem is the need to get more minorities directly involved in USG, May said, adding that USG needs to do a better job of helping these groups in their fights.