Q&A: Safety and Security at Salus University

In this podcast, we talk with Carlos Rodriguez, director of the Department of Safety and Security at Salus University. He explains the procedures, routines and resources the office implements to ensure the safety of the Salus community.

Carlos Rodriguez:

A little background, I spent about 14 years in law enforcement and then after that I went to higher education. I started at Drexel University as a security supervisor, left there and went to Villanova University. I was there for a while, did internal affairs there, investigations, and left there as patrol lieutenant, then went to Immaculata University for a couple years as an assistant director before landing here at Salus University.

Q: Who is the safety and security team, and what does the office do?

Carlos Rodriguez:

The security team is myself and then I have an administrative assistant. I have 11 full-time officers and six part-time or non-sworn security, with no police powers to arrest We're responsible for operating and maintaining an access control system for all the buildings and we issue student IDs and vehicle decals at the beginning of every year. We're responsible for preparing and investigating all incident reports on campus. If minor offenses, violations of university rules and regulations, are committed, the office may refer the individuals to the Office of Student Affairs or Human Resources.

We work closely with local, state and federal police agencies. We direct access to national and statewide computer databases for assessing criminal history data, nationwide police records, driver vehicle identification information, as well as other law enforcement information. We also maintain cooperation agreements with the Borough of Jenkintown police, Abington Township police department, and of course our neighbor, Cheltenham Township police, as well as The Eye Institute, with the 35th district Philadelphia police department.

Q: What’s the importance of safety and security on campus?

Carlos Rodriguez:

All students and faculty must feel comfortable and safe while on campus. If not, this will likely lead to poor academic performance and decreased social activity. It's an effort for the security team to make sure we provide open approach to the community, and it's important to me that the students, faculty and staff feel comfortable to approach anyone on the security team. When there is an incident or a sensitive nature that has occurred recently or in the past, I want them to feel comfortable. I want them to feel as though they can go to anybody on our team to connect with and be able to talk to about anything.

Q: Are there any specific routines or services that your team does to secure the safety on campus?

Carlos Rodriguez:

The security team is always available to do walking escorts. We help with access into classrooms and offices. In addition to daily monitoring of security cameras, we patrol the interior and exterior of the buildings. We check for any thefts in the parking lot, or we check for any property damage or vehicle damage, that's not reported.

If someone leaves their door open or leaves their trunk open, security will call on us to check in the system with their register, with their decal. And at that point, we're able to identify who the vehicle belongs to, and we can reach out to them to make sure they know everything's secured and nothing's missing. The team provides a high standard of service to the Salus community. We also do fingerprinting for all new students, as well as faculty and staff, who come into the University. 

Q: What would you want future or current Salus students to know about the office?

Carlos Rodriguez:

Know your way around campus and all clinics. Know your routine of how you're going to get to campus, if you're taking public transportation or your personal vehicle, or with a friend or a loved one dropping you off. I think it's important to know which routes you're going to take, especially when there's inclement weather. If you do drive to campus, make sure you remember to lock your vehicle. Also, if you have personal property that you're bringing on campus, it's kind of hard to carry everything around so use the locker space that's available, and make sure you lock your items up.

I believe that if you're with a group of people, you should try to remain with them as much as possible. Never walk alone, especially in late evenings, either at The Eye Institute or the Elkins Park campus. Leaving campus or going to off campus housing, be observant and know the layout of your new living arrangements. When on campus, take advantage of the campus escort. I want to stress that again. Always have emergency contacts on your phone — that includes us, the security department for Elkins Park and The Eye Institute. If you're ever involved in an incident, immediately report the incident to security or to me directly. A lot of students will come and report their incidents directly to me. I do have an open door for the department, so I think it's important that people know they can come in at any given time.

Q: Is there anything you would like to add?

Carlos Rodriguez:

Overall, I believe we all have come a long way over the past year. It's so incredible, seeing the students back on campus. One thing I need to mention, too, is that because of the COVID restrictions that we have, security is playing a big role in that. As far as making sure students are wearing masks, not eating in areas that are being used by other people, and just to be mindful not to open the doors for others to follow behind you. It's important right now that everyone's using their ID card, making sure it's on their person at all time and swiping in where needed. This also provides a tracing opportunity for us to determine where people have been, in the event that someone is a positive case with COVID. 

The Office of Safety and Security is proud of the work that we do here at Salus University. We are proud of the countless members of our campus community who strive to make our campus a safe and caring environment. A safe and supportive campus can only be achieved with everyone working together. As members of this community, we have a responsibility to stay alert, watch out for one another, report crimes, suspicious activity, and safety concerns to campus officials.

Most importantly, if you're unfortunate and do become a victim of crime, please know that you're not alone, and we are here for you. We are here to help you and offer support, and a support network to help you through those trying times.

For more information about the Department of Safety and Security at Salus, you can visit salus.edu/safetyandsecurity.