IACLEA Announces Global Center for Campus Public Safety

The center, which will open in 2019, will prepare research for global public safety practices and trends.
Published: December 8, 2018

IACLEA will significantly expand its support of global public safety, with the creation of the Global Center for Campus Public Safety.

The Center initially will be housed at the organization’s headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, and will open in 2019. Gerard “Jerry” Murphy, IACLEA’s director of professional services, will serve as the Center’s director, effective immediately.

While the campus public safety field is expanding in importance and prominence, there is still much we don’t know about the state of the profession and how to share successful best practices,” said IACLEA President Paul Ominsky, executive director of public safety at Princeton University in New Jersey. “The Center will both conduct and cultivate the research, disseminating the knowledge and ideas we believe will advance the profession and enhance public safety.”

With the guidance of an advisory committee, the Center will develop an agenda to foster applied research with campus public safety agencies to fill gaps in knowledge, identify best practices, and develop model policies.

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The Center will pursue collaborative strategies by consulting with universities and colleges, governments, foundations, and private entities and conducting research on their behalf.

The focus of the data will be to fill the void of understanding the scale and scope of the evolving field, identify current challenges and emerging trends, and amplify the findings of practices that lead to improved safety for the public, community, and officers.

“With additional research and data, IACLEA can expand its leadership role as the leading authority for campus public safety, not only in the United States but in Canada and around the world, as well,” said Pat Patton, IACLEA Canada Director, and director of security and operations at University of Regina, Saskatchewan. “No organization is better positioned to provide this vital information than IACLEA.”

Mark Sutton, head of security and emergency planning at Aston University in Birmingham, says the center will provide students and staff opportunities to work on projects and researched linked to global campus safety and security. They will be provided with recommendations and guidance for future developments and will represent all campus safety professionals.

“I look forward to assisting in the conduct, cultivation, and dissemination of research that will drive the enhancement of safety in the higher education sector in conjunction with other international, like-minded security personnel,” said Andrew King, investigations and communications coordinator, University Services, The University of Melbourne, Australia. “It is important for our region, with our diversified, multicultural population to be involved, provide input, and understand security safety challenges on a global scale. Improving campus security is necessary; making sure all university users are safe is vital.”

“The launch of this new Center is very exciting. With many of our students and faculty staff traveling globally to further their studies, this Center will be an invaluable resource to campus public safety professionals on a world stage,” said Ray Wheatley, security service manager, Dublin City University, Ireland, and a former IACLEA Board member.

Watch iaclea.org for additional announcements.

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