Safe Rides driver Scott Greenwalt resigned last month, alleging that the College limited his ability to do his job well and keep students safe.
Safe Rides is a shuttle service that provides free transportation for Davidson students from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. It has been around since 2008 and Greenwalt began driving in 2018. Greenwalt found the job fulfilling, despite its unconventional hours.
“Nobody wanted to go over there at 10 o’clock at night and start driving and get off at two o’clock or 2:30 in the morning,” Greenwalt said. “That’s not necessarily the ideal job, but I enjoyed it, and I felt like it was a service for the students that was well deserved.”
Over time, however, Greenwalt began to feel that he and fellow Safe Ride driver Rick Rudisill faced barriers to helping students. He cited past limitations on where he was allowed to drive, including New Korner Pub, a local dive bar.
“Two years ago, we were forbidden to drive up there,” Greenwalt said.
SGA got involved in the issue and Safe Rides was allowed to drive there. However, limitations continued. Occasionally, when Greenwalt would drive to and from campus, he said he would pass intoxicated students on the side of the road. Oftentimes he would stop and ask if they needed a ride, but he said the College’s Public Safety Department asked him to stop after receiving complaints about a white van pulling over to talk to people.
“There’s nothing on our van at that time that says Davidson College,” Greenwalt said.
Last year, Greenwalt and Rudisill decided to put decals on the van with the Davidson logo and the words “Student Safe Rider” and the Safe Rides phone number. Come summer, they found that the decals had been removed.
Rudisill did not respond to a request for comment. Greenwalt alleges that the College did not want anything with a Davidson logo near a bar or restaurant where students could drink.
Andy Kraeger is a staff assistant in the college’s public safety department and oversees the Safe Rides program. He did not respond to a request for comment. Jay Pfeifer, director of media relations for the College, said in an email to The Davidsonian that safety is the college’s top priority. He did not specifically address the issue of the College logo.
“I want to underscore that the safety and well-being of Davidson College students, faculty and staff is the highest priority of Davidson College Campus Police,” Pfeifer wrote. “They are committed to the Safe Rides program and are looking to hire a driver as soon as possible.”
Greenwalt’s resignation has led to staffing shortages and the elimination of Thursday night service. Rudisill is now the only driver.
The Safe Rides program also shuttles students to the airport during school breaks. Now that they are down a driver, SGA is turning to students to fill the gap. In an email announcing the schedule for shuttles before Thanksgiving break, SGA Senator Mary Devine wrote, “We are looking for a student driver to help with Thanksgiving airport shuttles.”
While the College is looking to replace Greenwalt, SGA is offering students $25 an hour to do his airport route. According to Devine, Greenwalt quit in the middle of his airport service over fall break.
“He quit in the middle of fall break,” Devine said. “He had done the first rounds of airport shuttles going to the airport, but then he quit right before the ones coming back.”
Devine often worked with Greenwalt through her role in SGA on the Accessibility Committee, which coordinates Safe Rides and the airport shuttles. Greenwalt’s resignation in the middle of break caught her off guard, but she was not entirely surprised.
“I sensed that he was wanting to quit at some point at the start of the year, and he kind of hinted at that at various times, saying things like, if he wasn’t given better treatment that he would leave,” Devine said. “I don’t know what ultimately caused him to quit.”
Issues surrounding the treatment of Safe Rides drivers by the College is nothing new. The drivers have dealt with funding issues, limited bathroom access and administrative miscommunications.
Still, Greenwalt enjoyed the work and built lasting connections with students.
“I get a lot of calls from students that don’t want to talk to their parents about things. They call me, and I still get it today, students I had seven years ago,” Greenwalt said.
Filling Greenwalt’s position means filling a void of more than just a driver. Greenwalt became a member of the campus community, interacting with students weekly and helping them get home safely.
The communal impact of the drivers is evident. In 2023, Greenwalt and Rudisill received the Omicron Delta Kappa Community Award, along with a standing ovation. After they accepted their award, Greenwalt was approached by College management and asked what the standing ovation was for.
“My response was: we don’t judge [students], we don’t grade them, we just try to keep them safe,” Greenwalt said. “The question was a clear sign that they just don’t get it.”