6. Are the public safety and/or campus police personnel professionals? Do they subscribe to a code of ethics and/or a code of professional conduct? Do they meet state standards in terms of hiring qualifications and training? Are the public safety officials certified and trained? Do they understand the importance of partnerships with all of the constituents within the campus community? What is the turn-over rate of the campus safety force? Is it better or worse than other agencies in the area? What about the pay and benefit package? Is it adequate? Are the housing officials professional? How is the staff in the dorms and other support services selected? Is the screening adequate? Once again, too many “no” answers in response to these questions make the state of campus safety and security at this institution very suspect. You may be better served moving on to another potential selection.
7. Is every staff member background-checked? In this day and age, everybody should be background-checked prior to employment. This includes new CEOs, administrators, faculty, staff, deans, cooks, vendors, police, part-time workers, contractors and student workers. If there are exceptions, th
e program is a sham and a waste of money. One exception “gone bad” can bring tragedy to many people and ruin the reputation of the institution for a long period of time. Is the risk worth it? If the officials at your campus say “yes,” and make exceptions, your safety may be at risk. Look somewhere else, because many good colleges and universities clearly understand the new obligations in this regard and make everybody undergo a background check.
8. Is the college or university connected to professional safety and security organizations? If the institution truly cares about your safety, it will be involved with local police associations, state campus safety associations, regional security groups and national campus protection associations. Is your prospective campus so involved? Does the institution belong to the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA)? If not, why not? Networking brings knowledge to the campus, and is vitally important to the health and quality of a campus protection program. Find out how “networked” the campus protection department actually is, and then make a determination if you feel it is adequate for your personal safety. If not, look elsewhere.
9. How does the college or university acknowledge the crime that occurs on or near campus? Does it report its crime statistics to the U.S. Department of Education and/or the Federal Bureau of Investigation? Does the institution in question publish an annual report showing the extent of crime on campus and in surrounding areas? Is this report made readily available to prospective and current students? How does the data for this campus compare with other similar institutions? Who is in charge of handling the crime data on this campus? Does the institution care about the safety and security of students residing off campus? How is that concern manifested? Are there active crime prevention and/or personal safety programs on campus? If an institution is very secretive about its crime data, something is seriously wrong. Secrecy in this regard would be a good reason to look elsewhere.
10. Is the campus security force adequately funded? How much money is spent on protecting this campus each year? What percentage of the total institutional budget is spent on campus safety and security? (The national norm is about 2.5 – 3 percent.) Are there adequate funds for personnel? Training? Uniforms? Weapons? Equipment? Vehicles? Office space? Software? Do college or university officials consider safety and security just “another line item in the budget,” or do they make it more of a priority? Historically, what do the local newspapers (including the campus newspaper) say about safety and security funding on this campus? Inadequate funding leads to ineffective and inefficient protective services. Does this institution show pride in its protective service program, or is the program just a “sham” to help entice you and others to buy their products and services? If you determine that the funding is inadequate, go somewhere else where safety and security is a real priority.
These 10 recommendations are aimed at parents and students trying to select the “best” institution in regards to personal safety and security issues. While no campus will ever be perfectly safe, some institutions give safety and security matters more priority than others. If your personal safety is important, you may want to select one of the safer campuses to live, work and study. Now, more than ever, selecting the “right” campus is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make.
James T. McBride, C.L.E.E., was the director of public safety and chief of police at a Lakeland Community College for the past 25 years. He has authored a number of articles on campus safety, emergency planning and homeland security, and was an active member of IACLEA over the last two decades. Now retired, he can be reached at: [email protected]
