Dear Students, Faculty and Staff:
As all of us settle into a new academic year, we would like to let you know about new safety initiatives and also remind you about existing services, resources and offerings designed to enhance the safety of our campus community.
First, we were heartened by the results of an off-campus safety survey initiated last semester. Here’s what students told us:
- Nearly all respondents indicated they feel safe in the University neighborhood during daytime hours on weekdays (97.5%) and weekends (96%).
- Three-quarters of respondents agreed “Syracuse University is a safe place for me to learn and live.”
- 70% of respondents agreed “Syracuse University cares about my safety.”
New safety initiatives, many of which were created as a direct result of your feedback, include:
- Expanded safety shuttle services, including two new fully accessible vans, focused on reducing wait time during late evening and early morning hours.
- Hired additional security guards to further support the neighborhood Department of Public Safety (DPS) Walking Escort program.
- Launched the DPS Student of Color Advisory Committee in May 2019.
- Publicly posted a map identifying the DPS area of jurisdiction and areas where the City of Syracuse Police Department has jurisdiction.
- Simplified the bus and shuttle schedule to make it easier to identify transportation options, especially during evening and late-night hours.
- Created an online form to report concerns to the Threat Assessment and Management Team.
- Established an officer relationship program to focus on building relationships between students and officers (led by Sergeant Joe Shanley).
- Implemented changes to the residential housing policy pertaining to overnight and short-term guests and minors.
- Enhanced the Residential Security Aide program in the residence halls to operate 24 hours a day by Spring 2020.
- Developed new opportunities for DPS officers to receive diversity, equity and inclusion training, including the creation of new dialogue circles.
- Installation of additional neighborhood cameras is underway.
Existing safety initiatives include:
Safety Strategies: While your chances of being a victim of a crime are actually very low, it is still important to be aware of certain safety strategies while at Syracuse University:
- Always lock your windows and doors, even if you’re only going to be away from your room for a short period of time or while you’re sleeping at night. Criminals look for opportunities, like an open window or unlocked door.
- Keep your stuff with you! Never leave cell phones, laptops, wallets or other valuables behind—it only takes a few seconds for someone to walk away with them.
- Use a U-bolt locking device for your bicycle and register your bike with DPS.
- Never walk alone. Most street crime incidents occur at night and usually involve students walking alone or with just one other person.
LiveSafe: Connecting with DPS is as easy as opening an app on your smartphone. With LiveSafe, you can call DPS or 911 in the event of an emergency, report tips including videos and pictures, or use the SafeWalk feature, which permits you to virtually share your location with friends as you walk to a destination. Download the app today!
Orange Alert: This is the University’s crisis notification system, designed to provide rapid notification and instruction in the event of a crisis. We perform a test of this system every semester and will be scheduling one for the upcoming month. In addition, due to our expanding campus, we recently added two more sirens to our system; one on the top of the Whitman School and the other on the top of the Falk College. Please log in to MySlice to verify that your contact information is up to date.
Run. Hide. Fight.: In the event of an active shooter situation, it’s important to be prepared. We created this video for you to understand the importance of these three words: Run. Hide. Fight.
Finally, remember that the Department of Public Safety is here for you 24/7 by calling 315.443.2224 or by connecting on the LiveSafe app.
Sincerely,
Bobby Maldonado
Chief, Department of Public Safety
Robert Hradsky
Vice President for the Student Experience