Timely Notification about Private Security Personnel on
CSU Campuses

AS-2742-06/FA - March 9-10, 2006

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate of the California State University (CSU) express concern about the use of private security personnel on CSU campuses; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU strongly urge campus senates, in conjunction with other appropriate bodies in the campus community, to participate in the development and/or review of local guidelines or recommendations with respect to the use of any private security personnel on their campuses; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU strongly recommend that these guidelines or recommendations include language about notifying the campus community, when possible, when private security personnel are hired; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU strongly recommend that these guidelines or recommendations also include language which ensures that any private security personnel that might be retained by a CSU campus be clearly informed regarding the diverse nature of the campus community and the types of communications and interactions that they may encounter, in order to promote safe and appropriate interactions between these security personnel and the campus community.

RATIONALE: Each of the CSU campuses has internal security personnel supported by public funding via the CSU budget and trained for the complexities of working in a university context. In addition, some campuses seek supplementary help from private security personnel. This practice is even more common during times of reduced funding when campus security units have difficulty maintaining an adequate level of staffing.

Often the faculty, staff and students are not aware of the presence on campus of private security personnel. Because universities operate according to a collegial ethos whose nature may be unfamiliar to people outside the university, campuses cannot ensure that private security personnel will be adequately prepared for the unique challenges of working in a diverse and multicultural university setting.

This resolution proposes a means of taking preventive measures to minimize or avoid the problems that may arise when private security personnel are hired on the campuses.