Public Safety Advisory Committee Annual Report 2021

A. Mission 

The purpose of the University Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) is to act as an advisory body to the President, Cabinet, and Academic Senate, to promote the cause of safety throughout the University campus, and to increase public safety among all members of the SF State campus community. The Advisory Committee will assist in describing the means for involving the SF State University Police Department (UPD) in achieving the University's goals of creating an environment which is most conducive to the mission of the University. 

B. Members 

1. Voting 

  • Alvin Alvarez, College of Health & Social Sciences 
  • Christopher Bettinger, Faculty Representative, Sociology & Sexuality Studies 
  • Sheryl Davis, Community Representative, Human Rights Commission 
  • Carina Gallo, Faculty Representative, Criminal Justice Studies 
  • Zion Levi, Student Representative 
  • Bridget McCracken, Staff Representative, Public Affairs and Civic Engagement 
  • Dae Philpot, Student Representative 
  • Dilon Reynolds, Staff Representative, Office of Emergency Services 
  • Enrique Vera Cruz, SFSU Public Safety Representative 

2. Ex-Officio 

  • Michael Beatty, Enterprise Risk Management 
  • Nicole Buitrago, Counseling and Psychological Services 
  • Frank Fasano, Facilities Services 
  • Danny Glassmann, Division of Student Life (thru March 2021) 
  • Reginald Parson, SFSU University Police Department 
  • Jeny Patino, Housing, Dining and Conference Services 
  • Theresa Pollard, Human Resources 
  • Lori Beth Way, Undergraduate Education and Academic Planning 
  • Fred Smith, Equity and Community Inclusion 
  • Pam Su, Division of Student Life (since April 2021)

C. Meetings 

The Public Safety Advisory Committee held its initial meeting on December 2, 2020 with the mission and charge outlined by President Mahoney. Since that initial meeting, PSAC has met on a monthly basis from January thru June 2021 – for a total of six meetings, each one hour long. The committee has agreed – with the support of its faculty and student representatives – to continue meeting on a monthly basis through Summer 2021. 

D. Scope of Work 

The primary focus of the committee has been to educate itself about the Division of Campus Safety and the University Police Department – with the goal of creating a shared baseline of knowledge for all committee members. An initial assessment of all PSAC members yielded four major categories of foundational questions: 

  1. Basics-Structure, Finances, Staffing, Operations, 
  2. Decision-Making, 
  3. Assessment and Evaluation, and 
  4. Community Relations. 

In the area of Basics, sample questions included: what is the organizational chart for UPD, how is it funded, what are its areas of responsibility. With respect to Decision-Making, committee members explored the role of UPD dispatch, protocols for active threat and altercations, Clery Act compliance and reporting. Questions about Assessment and Evaluation included the use of performance evaluations at UPD, SWOT analysis of the organization, and potential steps towards national accreditation. Lastly, Community Relations focused on the current relationship(s) between UPD and its community stakeholders, existing and historical efforts at community engagement, and mechanisms for communication and dialogue with the SFSU community. The primary sources of information for all foundational questions were Chief Parson and Sgt. Vera Cruz of the UPD.

E. Issues 

The PSAC discussions highlighted a number of recurring issues that will necessitate further exploration in the AY 21-22: 

  • Engagement and Communication: What are the mechanisms by which UPD is currently engaging with the campus community, particularly students, and how can we best develop these? What additional mechanisms need to be created beyond what already exists? How do we widen this engagement to be more inclusive and accessible to different communities across SFSU? How do we institutionalize an ongoing dialogue between UPD and the community? How does UPD communicate the work and progress it is making with the larger SFSU community? 
  • Assessment: What mechanisms are needed to assess the perceptions and impact of UPD and its work? How do we get input – both formative and summative – from the community? Are there existing assessments already? How might this inform the work of the UPD? 
  • Key Stakeholders: How are we defining community? Who are the key stakeholders (student groups, unions, Senate, communications, etc.) that could benefit from a closer linkage with UPD? How does UPD coordinate with these groups currently, and how can it be improved? 
  • Existing and Alternative Protocols: How does UPD currently respond to a range of situations involving public safety, who is the appropriate responder and what are the alternatives (armed officer, community specialist staff, mental health professional, faculty, etc.)? When is an armed officer warranted and when is it not? In those instances, when an armed response is not appropriate, then who is responsible? How is this response coordinated? 
  • Existing Trauma: Members of the SFSU community may have historic and current experiences with law enforcement – outside of and within campus – that may be traumatic. How do UPD protocols and operations address this and minimize re-traumatization? 
  • Resource Allocation: Given its current resources (staffing and budget constraints), what is reasonable for UPD to do or not do? What are the fiscal and operational implications of any of the changes that may arise from the work of the PSAC and UPD? 

F. AY 21-22 Planning

In June 2021, the PSAC conducted a survey of its members to prioritize the issues it will focus upon for Academic Year 2021-2022. The results pointed to the following ranked order of priorities: 

  1. Engagement, 
  2. Reviewing Protocols and Identifying Alternatives, and 
  3. Communication. 

Overall, starting in Fall 2021, the PSAC is shifting towards a public-facing stance that is designed to introduce the Committee more broadly to the SFSU community and to engage SFSU stakeholders and community members more inclusively in a solution-oriented collaboration and dialogue.