The transformation of campus policing: how to prepare your institution for the road ahead

Higher education institutions are not immune to the growing focus for improvements in racial and social justice on campus. Protests held around the nation in the summer of 2020 have compelled many institutional leaders to broadly assess policies and resources in place and make actionable changes to support increasingly diverse campus communities. Campus safety and police departments, like their local and state policing counterparts, are one area that students, faculty and staff alike have requested continued assessment and analysis.   

Many institutions across the country have some form of campus police or safety, whether they are commissioned police officers with the same authority as local municipality police or campus safety support personnel. Staffing and resources are often tied to overall institutional size and headcount, as well as location.

Core missions for campus police and safety departments typically center on serving and protecting those who attend, visit and work at their institutions. Their myriad responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Core policing activities (i.e., enforcing the laws of the local government and criminal law within the geography they are assigned, responding to calls of disruption and/or for order and safety and crime prevention)
• Collaborating with local law enforcement agencies
• Maintaining compliance with local, state and federal laws and regulations
• Monitoring disciplinary incidents
• Overseeing emergency preparedness, crisis management and disaster plan testing
• Supporting institutional policies
• Managing Clery Act compliance reporting and publication of crime statistics in the institution's annual security report (ASR)

However, as many campus police and safety officers will say, the value proposition for their departments lies in their more routine “non-policing” responsibilities, such as:

• Overseeing building security, opening and closing campus facilities and making sure classrooms and labs are secure
• Helping students, faculty and staff when they are locked out of offices and dorms
• Chaperoning building inspections