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The Future Of Campus Safety At Smith

February 18, 2020

Dear students, staff and faculty:

Last semester, the Ad Hoc Campus Safety Advisory Group (CSAG) met with more than 425 members of the Smith community in 14 listening sessions, three open forums and a community playback meeting to solicit feedback on the future of campus safety at Smith.

We received more than 750 comments, all of which informed our work and helped us meet our commitment to an inclusive, responsive and transparent process. We write to you today to update you on a number of our approved recommendations and to correct misinformation on social media.

A community-based, community-focused department
Smith’s independent campus safety department and dispatch will be located on West Street, across from the Indoor Track and Tennis Facility, through a renovation and expansion of the existing campus police space. This decision aligns with feedback from our community that dispatch should be located on the Smith campus and operated by staff deeply familiar with the Smith campus and community.

Additionally, participants in every listening session made clear their desire for a community-focused safety organization. This philosophy will inform every aspect of our new campus safety department, and will be manifest through such practices as additional biking and walking shifts to reduce the presence of police cruisers; additional programing to build community engagement; and the creation of a community advisory committee with seats for students to work with the new department. 

The department will continue its commitment to take no voluntary action to release any information regarding the citizenship or immigration status of any student, staff or faculty member unless legally compelled to do so. Should the college be subpoenaed for such information, we will seek legal counsel before taking any steps to comply. 

A sworn department
Smith will continue to employ sworn officers, as we have for many years. This decision was made for several reasons. First, a sworn department is held to high accreditation standards, and sworn officers are regularly trained on a host of issues including de-escalation, mental health response and inclusive community policing techniques. Additionally, a sworn and accredited department reduces the need for armed, local law enforcement (city and state) to respond to non-emergency calls on campus. As we indicated at the outset of CSAG’s work, our department will not be armed. 

The department’s name
The majority of the feedback received around the department’s name indicated that students, staff and faculty preferred keeping “police” as part of the department’s name so long as it was accompanied by a transparent, community-focused model. Based on that feedback, we plan to  continue to use “police” in the department’s name. Potential options include “Smith College campus police” and “Smith College campus police and public safety.” 

If you have any questions, we invite you to reach out to us by emailing campuspolicingvision@smith.edu or visiting the feedback session of the CSAG website

On behalf of the entire committee, I’d like to extend my thanks to the hundreds of you who helped guide our work. 

David DeSwert
Vice President for Finance and Administration
Chair, Ad Hoc Campus Safety Advisory Group

On behalf of the Ad Hoc Campus Safety Advisory Group:

  • Floyd Cheung, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion
  • David DeSwert, Vice President for Finance and Administration
  • Laurie Fenlason, Vice President for Strategic Initiatives
  • James Gray, Associate Vice President for Facilities and Operations
  • Karime Gutierrez ’20
  • Amy Hunter, Director of Equal Opportunity and Title IX Compliance
  • Isabelle Long ’20
  • Sam Masinter, Interim Vice President for Public Affairs
  • Julianne Ohotnicky, Associate Dean of the College/Dean of Students
  • Joanna Olin, Chief of Staff
  • Bill Peterson, Associate Provost
  • Nnamdi Pole, Professor of Psychology
  • Shanelle Whyte ’21
  • Deb Wijnhoven, Associate Director for Career Development