Xavier community’s latest security initiative: Safety Team 2

Last summer Jeff Coleman, associate vice president for audit
and risk management, began assembling a coalition of Xavier
community members called the “Safety Team 2” initiative,
a committee working to make campus more secure by suggesting a number of new safety measures. Safety Team 2 is made up of thirty-four volunteer members, including Xavier faculty, staff, and students, as well as captains from the Norwood and Cincinnati Police Departments. The coalition assesses and prioritizes security issues while
creating possible solutions to problems and making recommendations on how to make Xavier’s campus safer.
Safety Team 2’s charge, authored by Coleman, identifies six
key areas of focus in advancing and promoting campus security measures, including its intent to “develop and continue a culture of safety” and “communicate key messages to students, faculty, staff, and parents, including
what is being done with respect to safety at Xavier…and what they can do to enhance safety at Xavier.” The security features that will be implemented by Safety Team 2 build on the activity of “Safety Team 1,” a similar coalition that has been operating for the past two years. Safety Team 1’s suggestions were responsible for a number of projects including the upgrading of the XU AlertMe system and increased fighting and emergency phone systems across campus. As part of Safety Team 1, the Xavier Police’s twenty-seven-officer force began to receive assistance
from the Norwood and Cincinnati Police Department, a relationship that Coleman believes has helped tighten security on and just outside of Xavier’s campus. Coleman also hopes that Safety Team 2 will more greatly engage students in making campus safer. “We’re looking for ways to
embed safety into the culture across campus,” said Coleman. Among the projects being presented to Xavier’s higher administration are posters promoting Safety Team 2’s security measures and even the creation of a safety mascot.
Coleman encourages students to stop by his office or call the new anonymous hotline with suggestions about safety measures or concerns about security.