College campuses are supposed to be places where everyone can achieve a higher education. However, campuses are also hotspots for criminal activity – from excessive drinking and petty crime to rampant sexual assaults, statistics have shown that there are some holes in campus security across the nation. Whether a school is a local college or an Ivy League option, students deserve to feel safe and secure as they pursue their education. Here are six effective ways for improving campus security.
- Tailor Your Plans
Security isn’t a one-size-fits-all business – your security plan needs to be tailor-made for the individual needs of your institution. Whether it’s crowd management for schools with large athletics programs or protecting sensitive materials for science minded institutions, you’re going to need to have security measures that can effectively cover all of your bases.
- Form Partnerships with Community Groups
Colleges and universities often anchor the communities around them, and partnerships with other nearby institutions are common. Extending this attitude to the local police force can really help ensure that your campus is safe and secure – crime doesn’t care about boundaries, and neither should you.
- Train All Staff in Security
The level of awareness required for an emergency plan to be effective doesn’t just include your security staff – all of your faculty should be trained in how to respond to a threat or emergency so that students are kept as safe as possible.
- Only Use Technology That Works for You
For security technology to be effective, it has to fit into your overall security plan and integrate effectively with the systems that you already have in place. While technology has revolutionized all spaces of our lives and has been incredibly useful in some security situations, don’t just buy things because you’ve been told you need them.
- Report Your Incidents Transparently
Under the Clery Act, colleges and universities are required to produce an annual security report every October, including crime statistics and a summary of efforts taken to improve security. While these practices are mandatory under law, they’re also imperative for effective communication and building trust with your students, your security team, and the community at large.
- Be Flexible with Your Security Program
Campus environments are high-energy and constantly changing – your security practices should reflect this and be prepared for any situation. Building security directly into your campus by design can help you be ready for anything that the world throws at you and give your students peace of mind as they learn.