September 4, 2019

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I wanted to reach out to you to briefly convey some of our ongoing efforts to address your personal safety.  I think it is important for you to understand our approach to crime, and that our methodology is based on measures that are designed to prevent, intervene, and investigate.

As faculty and staff members, we understand that you may have encounters that result in others expressing displeasure, or even anger. In any such interaction, if you feel there is an individual who intends to harm you, please let HSUPD know about it.  All of our team members have received crisis intervention training, and are adept at connecting people with resources.  Our goal is to help you feel safe while on campus.  As we embark upon the start of our 106thacademic year, UPD is committed to leveraging every possible opportunity and precaution to create a safe environment here at Humboldt.

First and foremost, and not without the help of many valued Humboldt campus partners, we dedicate a great deal of effort to prevent violent incidents from ever occurring.  If you see a situation that causes you concern, we stress that you please call us and report it.  We also stress that personal safety awareness becomes a seamlessly integrated part of all your activities.  Practice taking inventory of your surroundings and conditions; be aware of your personal space, constantly evaluate and make adjustments as changing circumstances dictate.  The most effective defense against an act of violence is to prevent it from ever happening to begin with.

When efforts to prevent an incident are not successful, the next best response is to have systems in place to intervene, so as to limit the harmful outcomes of violence.  Your University Police Department is on-duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  We are always here, and we are trained/equipped to respond to any threat this campus may face. If you see or are experiencing a situation that threatens your safety or the safety of others, do not hesitate to call 9-1-1.  Also, we will communicate with the campus in the event of any threat to life-safety.  If you have not updated your emergency contact information via the myHumboldt portal, I urge you to do so today.  While you are doing that, I would also urge you to visit the UPD website for information about the Rave Guardian App, which is like having a campus blue light station on your device.

Lastly, if an act of violence has already occurred, we investigate. In addition to fulfilling the objective of identifying and apprehending the perpetrator, we seek to learn as much from the investigation as we can.  Our goal is to understand the motive of the crime, the conditions that contributed to the crime, what efforts could have facilitated an intervention before or during the crime, and finally, what measures can be taken to prevent it from happening again.  We are participants in a regional critical incident response group, which draws from the experience and expertise of a diverse team of investigators to supplement UPD staff during critical investigations. We strive to use all of the information gleaned from such investigations to improve and inform our preventative and intervention measures.

Our Student Safety Escort Program provides Humboldt students and community members, who do not feel comfortable walking alone, a uniformed student employee escort to walk them between campus buildings, to their vehicle, residence halls, shuttle/bus stop, or other locations on the Main Campus during hours of darkness.  This service will operate Monday - Friday, from 5:00PM until 12:30AM, during the academic year.  Student employees will also locate, log, and secure propped doors in the residential halls, and elsewhere across campus.  This provides an increased level of safety by providing a visual deterrent. Additionally, student employees will conduct lighting surveys, quarterly function-tests of the campus blue light stations, library walk-throughs, and be available to assist with special events.

Important safety steps and services to consider:

• If you see something, say something - CALL 9-1-1 IN AN EMERGENCY
• Be aware of your surroundings (take inventory)
• Contacts with agitated individuals should be kept at a minimal distance of two arm's- length (encroachment beyond this distance should be seen as a red flag)
• If possible, have a colleague present during such instances
• If you believe someone is harboring animosity, to a degree that they might physically harm you, or if they have threatened to harm you, let us know so we can develop an individual safety plan for you
• Consider an escape route in situations that become hostile
• We offer active shooter training, which not only addresses active shooter situations, but also offers suggestions about the mindset that can be beneficial in any hostile encounter
• We offer a women’s self-defense class
• Consider other campus resources that seek to intervene and/or de-escalate violence
• Make plans in advance with colleagues on what to do in a variety of situations that you think could threaten your well-being
• Learn about and practice "Run! Hide!  Fight!"

It is my hope that this information serves as a reminder, and encourages you to feel more empowered to address the potential for violence.  By candidly discussing such topics in a comprehensive and holistic manner, we stand the best chance of successfully achieving a safe and secure campus environment.

Know that your Cal Poly Humboldt Police Department is here to serve you.  Please do not hesitate to communicate with us on the ways we can leverage training, experience, and resources to reduce crime and the fear of crime at Humboldt.

Sincerely,

Donn G. Peterson
Chief of Police