MILWAUKEE - Austin Baade and Christina Radomski are trying to make their street safer in an area where students have been attacked.

"We're just here if you have any questions," Radomski told one student during a door-to-door visit Friday.

With crimes like assault, robbery and theft on the rise near the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus, officials are now calling on students to help protect and patrol the neighborhoods.

"There was a robbery right outside [my] house," explained Baade. "It kind of does freak you out. You want to do something to prevent it from happening again."

The acronym for the pilot program is COAST, Community Outreach and Assistance for Student Tenants. It's a lengthy name with a simple mission. The concept is that a better connected neighborhood will be a safer neighborhood. UWM launched the pilot program in January with six student employees. COAST block leaders earn $1,300 a semester.

"If students get to know each other that live close by, they'll feel more comfortable," Radomski told TODAY'S TMJ4 reporter Tom Murray.

University administrators believe COAST will build relationships between students and long-term residents.

"I think the ball gets rolling in the right direction and we all benefit," said Carla Powell, who lives a block south of the UWM campus.

For Andy Wisner, a senior and COAST block leader, this is good experience for his future. He plans to take a job as a police officer after graduation in May.

"I personally think that community policing and everything that it entails is very important," said Wisner. "I think this program offers a unique opportunity to do it first hand."

Another group with a different mission (and a different acronym) works more directly with the police department. SAFE walkers are paid to walk the streets in pairs wearing vests with neon green reflectors. The trained teams look for crimes in progress and they escort students home after dark.

The campus police employ 20 people in this program, 18 are students. SAFE stands for Safety Awareness For Everyone. UWM launched the SAFE walkers last fall.

"They care about the neighborhood," said Sgt. Art Koch of the UWM Police Department. "They care about protecting their fellow students.":

The ideas are working so well that the university plans to hire more students for both neighborhood watch programs next semester.