With over 15 million students and several million more faculty and staff at U.S. institutions of higher education, it is not surprising that campus safety is a field of great interest within community policing. That is why the COPS Office provides a range of resources to help administrators and security personnel create safe and secure environments on our nation's colleges and universities.

The Scope of the Problems

Security services on the nation's campuses vary considerably in size, role, authority, and quality. They include full-service police departments, private security operations, contractual services, and more. Campus police departments also vary greatly in how they relate to and share information with local and state public safety agencies.

In light of tragic violent events on several campuses, more than 20 institutional, state, professional association, and governmental reports have recommended that colleges and universities develop and implement threat assessment and management tools to enhance campus safety. The COPS Office offers a variety of resources aimed at helping the campus public safety field address these and many other issues.

COPS programs focused on institutions of post-secondary education have included the 2004 National Summit on Campus Public Safety hosted by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Community Policing Institute, the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement's Fellowship Program and Accreditation Pilot, the United Negro College Fund Special Programs Corporation's Campus-Community Policing Partnership Program and, most recently, the Margolis Healy and Associates Campus Threat Assessment training seminars.