Mission And History
Our Vision
Safer and stronger campus communities.
Our Mission
We provide useful resources and information to support safer campus communities.
Our Values
- Agility & Innovation: To anticipate, identify, and respond to evolving campus safety and emergency management needs with innovation and adaptability.
- Collaboration: To foster relationships between campus public safety and emergency management professionals, student administrators, advocacy organizations, community leaders, professional associations, federal agencies, and others to strengthen campus communities.
- Commitment: To thoughtfully and consistently dedicate our efforts to achieving our vision through implementing our mission.
- Integrity & Credibility: To earn the trust of those we serve by operating with the highest ethical standards while fulfilling our obligation as an organization.
Our History
The National Center for Campus Public Safety was established in 2013 with a $2.3 million bipartisan grant from the US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). In consultation with key stakeholders and federal partners, BJA developed a competitive solicitation (PDF) and received proposals to create and host the National Center. Through this process, a cooperative agreement and subsequent funding were awarded to Burlington, Vermont based Margolis Healy, a national consulting firm specializing in campus safety, security and regulatory compliance for higher education and K-12, in the fall of 2013. Margolis Healy was charged with establishing and leading the National Center.
The National Center became a reality after nearly a decade of discussion within the public safety community. In 2004, The National Summit on Campus Public Safety was held in Baltimore, Maryland. The summit provided an opportunity for discussion and collaboration on more than 20 key campus safety issues. One of the recommendations that came out of the Summit was the need for a National Center for Campus Public Safety because there was not a centralized location for the myriad campus public safety resources and initiatives being undertaken nationwide, or for the fulfillment of critical information needs.
Since the tragedy at Virginia Tech in April 2007, several additional high profile incidents have adversely affected college and university campuses. These incidents range from natural disasters such as hurricanes and super storms to other rampage shooting incidents. In addition, concerns for the prevention of gender and sexual violence on campus (Title IX), recent issues of firearms on college campuses, and challenges in Clery Act compliance, etc., have further demonstrated the need for a central repository of safety and security information and resources, technical assistance and training to assist institutions of higher education (IHEs) in their efforts to enhance campus security and readiness.