NCJ Number
197310
Journal
Campus Law Enforcement Journal Volume: 32 Issue: 4 Dated: July/August 2002 Pages: 19-22
Date Published
July 2002
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article profiles a plan for assessing or developing a competent, state-of-the-art campus security program.
Abstract
A mission statement should be composed to define the campus security department, its purpose, and its tasks. Subsets to the mission statement include complete staff job descriptions, updating them, defining department goals and objectives annually and in 5-year plans, and defining services as well as duties and responsibilities. Every security manager should conduct a needs assessment of the organization. After determining the nature of the operations, status, and authority of the campus security department in consultation with university officials, staff must be trained to perform assigned tasks with knowledge, competence, and skill. This requires the tailoring of staff training to the job responsibilities and the security needs of the campus. Further, after identifying and defining security service needs, the equipment and technology required to support the required services should be purchased. Detailed campus security policies and procedures should be developed and put in writing in a manual. Other issues that must be addressed in meeting security needs are communications and dispatch, the security of campus buildings, environmental safety and health, traffic and parking, relationships with other agencies, crime prevention and public relations, compliance with local and Federal regulations, and liability issues and risk management.