Eastern’s collaborative Homecoming Parade initiative will go into effect this week following city approval.

The initiative, put together by the University Board Homecoming Committee, works to combine efforts between Eastern and its hometown to ensure security along the parade route.

Homecoming committee chair Chelsea Frederick, a junior speech communication major, said the original Parade Escort Team initiative will go into effect this week.

“We talked to the mayor about it,” Frederick said. “Everything is finalized just as it was presented last week.”

Last Tuesday, the Charleston City Council heard a presentation of the Homecoming Committee’s initiative.

As a response to reports of last year’s parade spectators harassing and throwing objects at participants, representatives from Eastern and the city have been working to increase parade security.

Frederick outlined plans for combined efforts between city officials and police and Eastern students, the Student Government, administrators and campus police.

The initiative included plans to develop rules and make them readily available to all parade spectators and participants.

During her presentation, Frederick said, “The Parade Escort Team is taking the initiative to create a brochure, pass it out, put ads in the newspaper, radio, T.V., in the dorms, the union, everywhere; the rules will be posted.

“Basically we’ll post the rules all over the campus, all over the community to stop what is going to happen before it happens.”

The Charleston and University Police Departments and a team of Eastern representatives will patrol the route in Parade Escort Team shirts. Eastern representatives will carry walkie-talkies and contact police should they encounter inappropriate behavior.

Those choosing to ignore the regulations will be issued citations and students will be submitted to judicial affairs.

Mayor Dan Cougill suggested Tuesday that police begin patrolling the parade route 6:30-7 a.m., warning residents hosting parties of potential punishment for misbehavior.

The city’s External Relations Committee of Cougill and council members Marge Knoop and Larry Rennels had until Friday to approach the Homecoming Committee with initiative recommendations.

Cougill said he believed Frederick covered all of the city’s suggestions in the original initiative.

“One of the items Marge brought up was to make sure whatever we did, that we disciplined students and residents equally,” he said.

The intiative’s components will go into effect this week.

“We are going to hand out brochures and flyers over the weekend, or since it is a break, maybe Monday,” Frederick said.

University and city police will be warning partying residents along the route before the parade.

“Police will be going to every house along Sixth and Seventh Streets, laying down the law,” she said. “If they have to come back that is when they will get in trouble.

Inappropriate behavior during the parade will be immediately punished since residents have already been warned.”

“We want to make it a point that we are expecting everyone in the parade, participants and spectators, to act responsibly,” Cougill said.

City Editor Carly Mullady can be reached at [email protected].