Tagged: Safety

With students returning for move-in this week at Ohio State's Columbus campus, police and security are out in full force. As reported by ABC6, since implementing new security measures, like license plate readers, more lights and cameras, Ohio State says:

"Crime is actually down in the university district since those enhancements began a few years ago."

Police still advise students to be vigilant by locking doors and windows, not leaving valuables out and walking with friends or using transportation, especially at night.

Take an inside look at The Ohio State University Department of Public Safety’s state-of-the-art communications and 911 call center. Dispatchers and alarm and video monitors work side-by-side using more than 4,000 campus surveillance cameras and other technology to enhance campus safety.

Safety leaders and administrators from fellow Big Ten schools gathered at The Ohio State University for the 2023 Big Ten Chiefs and Public Safety Directors Conference. The conference featured professional speakers including Dr. Kimberly Miller and Amy Hess who spoke about agency culture and managing crises. Ohio State also presented on crisis intervention, the Joint Terrorism Task Force and its diversity equity and inclusion training.

The Ohio State University Police Division (OSUPD) celebrated two new officers joining its force on May 26, 2023. Officers Kristen Kovach and James Welch both received their OSUPD badge. Officer Kovach will serve the Columbus campus while officer Welch will serve the Wooster campus.

After serving one tour in Japan and one in Africa as a United States Marine, Bobby Fair was ready to come home. He enrolled at The Ohio State University as a business major with the goal of becoming an accountant. 

On Nov. 28, 2016, Fair was a student when an attacker on Ohio State's campus drove his car into a crowd and began cutting bystanders with a knife. 

Finding yourself in an active aggressor situation can cause extreme panic and disorientation. But if you know what to do ahead of time, your chances of surviving this type of emergency situation are greatly increased. This video describes the three different types of classroom door locks around campus and how to use them. Watch the Surviving an Active Aggressor video.

See the classroom lock video below or on YouTube.

Specturm News recently told the story of an Ohio State student-athlete's parents who were targeted by scammers. Police nationwide have seen an uptick in "spoofing" where scammers spoof a local police phone number on the victim's caller ID, like OSUPD's 614-292-2121, and demand money.

"We would never call or cold call someone asking for cash or a gift card," said OSUPD Lieutenant Bruce Allen. "If someone does fall victim to this scam they should report it."

Every year during the second week of April during National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, we honor telecommunications personnel working in the public safety community.

As the weather warms up, we’re asking everyone to look out for their fellow Buckeyes. Your safety is our top priority, and we all play a part in promoting a safe campus environment when traveling to class and work.

The Lantern recently published an article about Ohio's new distracted driving law. Beginning April 4, distracted driving was promoted to a primary offense in the State of Ohio. If police see you texting and driving on, or after, April 4 they will have the discretion to pull drivers over for violations. This law, a part of Senate Bill 288, aims to crack down on the amount of crashes and deaths that are caused by distracted driving.