Page 98 - Security Today, October 2018

CRIME PREVENTION
FIVE WAYS TECHNOLOGY CAN FORGE A SAFER CAMPUS
By Rich LeCates
The conclusion of the last academic year likely is not one college safety and administrative officials will add to an industry honor roll anytime soon. Nationally publicized on-campus shootings and sexual assault cases left many students, parents, employees and even law enforcement agencies questioning what more their schools could do to further their safety.
Ironically, the recently brighter spotlight on campus violence comes during an era where college administrators are spending more than ever on next-level security. A January 2015 Bureau of Justice Statistics report noted the number of full-time campus law enforcement employ- ees grew by 16 percent between 2005 and 2012, or at a pace faster than the growth in student enrollment (11 percent). Last year, sales of secu- rity equipment and services to the education sector reached $2.7 bil- lion, up from $2.5 billion in 2015, according to data from IHS Markit.
However, despite these investments, campus security teams still face great strain against growing student enrollments, expanding facilities and campus borders that increasingly overlap with neighboring com- munities. Even with assistance from city officials and resources, cam- pus security teams can feel overwhelmed with the burdens of safe- guarding thousands of students and employees. The National Center for Education Statistics calculated that persons and property on cam- pus at two- and four-year institutions were subject to more than 27,500 criminal incidents in 2015, up two percent from the preceding year.
However, this number paints an incomplete picture as it does not fac- tor in crimes that happen off campus, and outside of the scope of cam- pus administrators and public safety teams.
Given the rise in campus crime and the greater pressure from stu- dents and officials to counter it, smart technologies can play a signifi- cant role in driving change. While advancements such as data science, cloud storage, machine learning and Internet of Things (IoT) connec- tivity are commonly associated with private business, these innova- tions have the potential to overcome staffing shortages and provide campus safety officials with broader intelligence that can improve effi- ciencies and potentially save lives.
With both the fall semester and planning for the new year already underway, now is a great time for university officials to explore new avenues to better serve their students, staff and community through operational upgrades that will drive change and fuel confidence. These five considerations can guide your evaluation and inspire new strategic thinking for a safer and smarter campus.
SMART PATROLLING
What if campus officials could leverage deeper and more streamlined data to not only reduce the reach and frequency of criminal behavior, but even prevent it from happening in the first place?
Automated databases can simplify communication among involved campus safety officials, leveraging specialized algorithms to track
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CAMPUS SECURITY & LIFE SAFETY