Mission and Vision Statement

Our Mission:

The Department of Public Safety is dedicated to maintaining a safe and secure living, learning and working environment in partnership with those it serves by respectfully employing the highest professional standards and providing exceptional service to the Syracuse University community.

Our Vision:

The Department of Public Safety’s vision is to lead in all areas of professional campus law enforcement practices, to effectively address the safety and security needs of its community, and to uphold the mission of the University by supporting an environment in which diverse social, cultural, and academic values are free to develop and prosper.

The Three Roles of the Department of Public Safety (DPS)

Members of the Department of Public Safety have three primary roles. While we are a professional campus law enforcement agency and our academy training is focused on the special skills necessary to accomplish a law enforcement mission, our primary focus remains on service to our community and the safety of our students, faculty and staff, and security for our campus.

  • As a service agency, we are charged not only with protecting our students, faculty and fellow staff from harm and crime victimization, but we are also responsible to assist them and provide them with service that improves the quality of university life.
  • As a safety and security agency, we are charged with the responsibility of being the front line in homeland security as well as ensuring our properties are secure from damage or loss. We are also charged with proactively identifying safety and environmental hazards on our properties and in campus operations, and partnering with other campus departments in reporting.
  • As a campus law enforcement agency, we are responsible for keeping the peace, protecting life, reducing crime and enforcing laws, all aimed at protecting the lives of our students, faculty and staff and protecting their property as well as university property.