Guest Column: Signature would increase STRIPES volunteers

By Domingo Pacheco, STRIPES Director, dlpzpf@mizzou.edu
Oct. 7, 2008

Last semester, I approached the issue of lowering the driving age for our STRIPES program, an action I'd taken before. Realizing it would be an uphill battle, I decided to approach the argument differently than had been done in the past. I knew it could be done; it was just a matter of how. And so, in the best interests of STRIPES, MU and the Columbia community, I went all in.

The whole idea of lowering the driving age came from asking students what they want from the program and by examining it from within and without. I've witnessed firsthand that, time and time again, STRIPES suffers from a lack of volunteers; we have been doing better, but we aren't close to the necessary level.

And, from the perspective of patrons, we are doing a service. But it could do much better. The chief complaint, almost unanimously, is that STRIPES "takes too long." To correct that problem, we will soon be increasing our infrastructure and offering more vehicles - increasing our fleet by two, from six to eight - which means we need to increase our volunteer pool.

The benefits of more vehicles were highlighted when Alpha Kappa Psi, a business fraternity, sponsored a night of STRIPES, providing nine vehicles instead of the normal number.

Consequently, ride times dropped across the board. And, at peak times around 1 a.m. and 1:30 a.m., rides still did not take longer than 30 minutes, which contrasted with the normal one hour to an hour and a half wait. And we want to make this consistent, since there is no reason anyone should have to wait any longer on a typical night.

We need to recruit 20 volunteers each night to staff our dispatch center and eight vehicles for an entire semester. That means, in one semester, we need 120 members that each work five nights. That's right. Members.

One of the biggest changes to STRIPES is not just the lowered driving age but this transition to a membership base. Starting Nov. 1, when younger drivers flock through our doors, we will no longer be able to accept walk-in volunteers. We will no longer be able to take groups, either. The reason isn't to exclude anyone; it's just that, with younger drivers, we are taking on a big risk. So if you would like to volunteer for STRIPES, you need to apply to be a member at http://stripes.missouri.edu. Then click "Join STRIPES," on the left side of the screen.

When approached and asked to allow younger drivers, Enterprise consistently said no, to the dismay of our program. We had a relationship with them for seven years. But when they refused, I went to Avis, and they said yes.

Pending the signature from Jacquelyn Jones, the vice chancellor for administrative services, this transition will occur within the next month.

We are thrilled to work with Avis, excited to begin this new chapter and happy the university is allowing us to make this change. My only hope is that words translate to action. And so, until we see a signature, I patiently wait.

Domingo Pacheco

STRIPES Director

dlpzpf@mizzou.edu

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Guest Column: Signature would increase STRIPES volunteers

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