Southwestern University Case Study: G Aggregate Planning
With the rising demands of a successful football program, the campus
police chief at Southwestern University, John Swearingen, wants to
develop a two-year plan that involves a request for additional
resources. The SWU department currently has 26 sworn officers. The size
of the force has not changed over the past 15 years, but the following
changes have prompted the chief to seek more resources
The size of the athletic program, especially football, has increased.
The college has expanded geographically, with some new research
facilities and laboratories now miles away from the main campus. Traffic
and parking problems have increased.
More portable, expensive computers with high theft potential are
distributed across the campus. Alcohol and drug problems have increased.
The size of the surrounding community has doubled. The police need to
spend more time on education and prevention programs.
The college is located in Stephenville, Texas, a small town about 30
miles southwest of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. During the summer
months, the student population is around 5,000. This number swells to
20,000 during the fall and spring semesters. Thus demand for police and
other services is significantly lower during the summer months. Demand
for police services also varies by:
Time of the day (peak time is between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m.)
Day of the week (weekends are the busiest).
Weekend of the year (on football weekends, 50,000 extra people come to campus)
Special Events (check-in, check-out, commencement)
Football weekends are especially difficult to staff. Extra police
service is typically needed from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on five football
Saturdays. All 26 officers are called in to work double shifts. More
than 40 law enforcement officers from surrounding locations are paid to
come in on their own time, and a dozen state police lend a hand free of
charge (when available). Twenty-five students and local residents are
paid to work traffic and parking. During the last academic year (a
nine-month period), overtime payments to campus police officers totaled
over $120,000.
Other relevant data include the following: The average starting salary
for a police officer is $32,000. Work-study and part-time students and
local residents who help with traffic and parking are paid $12.00 an
hour. Overtime is paid to police officers who work over 40 hours a week
at the rate of $20.00 an hour.
Extra officers who are hired part time from outside agencies also earn
$20.00 an hour. There seems to be unlimited supply of officers who will
work for the college when needed for special events. With days off,
vacations, and average sick leave considered, it takes five people to
cover one 24-hour, seven-days-a-week positions. The schedule of officers
during fall and spring semesters is:
Weekdays/Weekends:
First shift (7 a.m.-3 p.m.)
Second shift (3 p.m.-11 p.m.)
Third Shift (11 p.m.-7 a.m.)
There is staffing for football weekends and special events in addition
to the preceding schedule. Summer staffing is, on average, half of the
hours shown.
Swearingen thinks that his present staff is stretched to the limit.
Fatigued officers are potential problems for the department and the
community. In addition, neither time nor personnel has been set aside
for the crime prevention, safety, or health programs. Interactions of
police officers with students, faculty, and the staff are minimal and
usually negative in nature. In light of these problems, the chief would
like to request funding for four additional officers, two assigned to
new programs and two to alleviate the overload on his current staff. He
would also like to begin limiting overtime to 10 hours per week for each
officer.
Discussion Questions
1. Which variations in demand for police services should be considered
in an aggregate plan for resources? Which variations can be accomplished
with short-term scheduling adjustments?
2. Evaluate the current staffing plan. What does it cost? Are 26 officers sufficient to handle the normal workload?
3. What would be the additional cost of the chief's proposal? How would you suggest that he justify his request?
4. How much does it currently cost the college to provide police
services for football games? What would be the pros and cons of
completely subcontracting this work to outside law enforcement agencies?