NCCPS Announces Release of Report on Campus Policing in an Urban Environment

 

Participants from urban campus police departments identified five areas as challenging in a recent emerging issues forum: campus access, resources, relationships and partnerships, student welfare off campus, and communications. To discuss these challenges, as well as provide potential solutions and recommendations for addressing them, the National Center for Campus Public Safety (NCCPS) facilitated a one-day forum. The forum aligns with the NCCPS's role as a nationwide resource for addressing critical issues in campus safety. Today, we are pleased to release the resulting report Campus Policing in an Urban Environment (PDF).

 

According to 2016 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, most Americans live in urban areas with only about one in five people living in rural areas. Urban areas are also home to 68% of the nation's 7,000+ institutions of higher education (IHEs). In addition to educating students, urban IHEs are often the biggest employers in their cities. Many house state-of-the-art research facilities and others provide critical medical facilities, operate highly regarded cultural venues, fund vital community projects, and advocate for various community-development initiatives.

 

Nonetheless, urban IHEs also face special challenges when it comes to safety and policing efforts. Denser populations, space constraints, infrastructure issues, and other characteristics common in urban areas are all factors. Urban IHEs that fail to keep their campuses safe can jeopardize student admission and retention efforts, make it harder to attract and retain talented employees, and even endanger funding efforts, all of which can threaten the surrounding community's economic vitality.

 

On August 1, 2017, a group of 36 campus safety leaders from 17 IHEs, federal officials, and several campus safety-related professional associations gathered in Charlotte, North Carolina, at Queens University to consider these key questions:

Download the  full report (PDF) to learn more about the key challenges identified by participants as well as a promising practices that urban campus police departments can implement to improve safety in their IHE communities. Please visit our  emerging issues forums web page to see reports on other topics of interest.

Have You Applied for HSIN Access?

 

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is committed to sharing timely, relevant, and accurate information with its campus safety and law enforcement partners. Members of these communities raised questions about access to intelligence and analytic products, noting that these items are essential for maintaining situational awareness and safety. To meet these needs, the Office of Partnership and Engagement/Office for State and Local Law Enforcement (OPE/OSLLE), with assistance from the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A), is facilitating requests for Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN) membership for interested campus safety/police departments.

 

HSIN is DHS's primary mechanism for sharing Sensitive But Unclassified (SBU) information and will often be the sole vehicle for campus police departments to access DHS intelligence products. Federal, state, local, territorial, tribal, international, and private sector homeland security partners use HSIN to manage operations, analyze data, send alerts and notices, and in general, share the information they need to do their jobs. This fact sheet (PDF) highlights the current features of HSIN and where it is expected to go in the future. Information posted to HSIN originates from stakeholders responsible for many aspects of homeland security operations (e.g., fusion centers, state and local police departments), so users can be confident in the products' analyses and conclusions. In addition to receiving access to DHS products, authorized users may post their own publications (e.g., alerts, fact sheets, BOLOs) to share information with neighboring jurisdictions or request information from other departments. Examples of previously posted products related to campus safety include the DHS/Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Initiative (NSI) Campus Safety Fact Sheet (PDF), intelligence bulletins, and assessments on threats to special events or critical infrastructure.

 

In general, applicants must be sworn police officers; however, non-sworn campus safety officers who are sponsored by their local municipal police department may be eligible for access to specific communities. For example, non-sworn campus safety officers sponsored by a municipal law enforcement agency may be eligible for access to the HSIN Law Enforcement community. Campus safety and police officers are strongly encouraged to apply for HSIN access and membership to the appropriate HSIN community. To learn more about HSIN and requesting access to a HSIN community, view  OSLLE's message to campus safety and law enforcement partners on our website. Please send an email to HSIN Outreach to request access to HSIN with the following information: first and last name, valid email address, requested COI, and reason for access. You may also use this email to ask any questions about the program.

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