This information is being provided to you as part of Northeastern University's commitment to safety and security on campus, and is in compliance with the requirements of the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990.
Reporting Crimes and Emergencies
The Public Safety Division provides a comprehensive program of police, security, crime prevention, fire safety, emergency medical, parking and related public safety services to help ensure the university community remains a safe and pleasant place in which to study, live and work.
Members of the Northeastern community are encouraged to report crimes, suspicious activity or other emergencies to the Public Safety Division immediately.
The division's headquarters is at Columbus Place (716 Columbus Ave.) and can be contacted by calling (617) 373-2121.
To report emergencies of police, fire or medical nature, the number is (617) 373-3333 or 373-3934 (TTY). Calls are answered 24 hours a day by full-time trained communications officers at the division's modern police operations center.
Well-marked emergency telephones are located throughout the campus and can be used to report crimes or other types of emergencies.
The division maintains direct telephone contact with the Boston police and fire departments, ensuring prompt assistance and support from these agencies when needed.
Access To Campus Facilities
Most campus buildings and facilities, other than student residence halls, are accessible to members of the campus community, their guests and visitors during normal hours of business, and during designated hours on weekends and holidays, depending on the wide variety of events and activities taking place outside the normal business hours.
Exterior doors to student residence halls remain locked 24 hours a day. Proctors monitor access at most residence halls, and access is permitted to residents upon presentation of a valid student ID card. Residence is verified by an electronic access control system. Guests and visitors to proctored residence halls must present a photo ID to the proctor and be signed in by their host.
Most residence halls are equipped with intrusion alarms on exterior doors, as well as alarms to detect doors that have been propped open. These alarms are monitored at the Public Safety Division police operations center, and university police are dispatched to investigate each alarm.
The university provides housing for some students through agreements with realty management firms for spaces in buildings not managed by Northeastern University. These facilities follow security codes in accordance with the city of Boston regulations.
Maintenance and Security of Campus Grounds and Facilities
The university maintains a very strong commitment to campus safety and security. Exterior lighting is an important part of this commitment. Parking areas, pedestrian walkways and building exteriors are well lighted. Surveys of exterior lighting on campus are conducted by officers of the Public Safety Division on a regular basis, and the physical plant department gives high priority to maintenance of exterior lights that need replacement. Members of the campus community are encouraged to report any exterior lighting deficiencies to the Public Safety Division.
Public Safety Division officers lock the exterior doors on campus buildings following the last class each evening. Door and locking hardware deficiencies are reported by these officers upon discovery.
Shrubbery and trees on campus are trimmed on a regular basis.
Campus streets, parking areas, grounds and buildings are patrolled 24 hours a day by university police officers, university security officers and cooperative education students employed as police cadets. Patrols of residence halls include the perimeter as well as lobbies, cafeterias and basements. Contract security officers supplement the Public Safety Division officers, providing a visible deterrent to crime and serving as additional "eyes and ears" for the university police.
Law Enforcement Authority and Interagency Relationships
University police officers are commissioned in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 22C, Section 63, of the Massachusetts General Laws, and have full law enforcement authority in and upon all property owned, occupied or used by the university.
The division recognizes its responsibility to provide crime prevention and emergency police services to members of the Northeastern community while they are in the immediate campus neighborhood, as well as when on official campus property. To that end, university police officers also hold commissions as deputy sheriffs in Suffolk County, providing them with the authority to exercise police duties on the public streets and other areas of the city contiguous to the campus. Full-time security officers and Northeastern students employed as police cadets supplement the full-time professional police officers.
All newly appointed university police officers are graduates of a police academy conducted or sanctioned by the Massachusetts State Police or Massachusetts Criminal Justice Training Council. Recruit training academies consist of several months of full-time, in-depth training in all aspects of police operations, and are followed by several weeks of field training under the close supervision of a field training officer. Annual in-service refresher training is provided to all officers, and officers are also frequently assigned to attend in-depth training in a wide variety of specialized topics, such as crime prevention theory and the investigation of sexual assaults and bias-motivated crime, as well as other subjects that enhance the ability of the division to provide comprehensive public safety services.
The Public Safety Division maintains a close working relationship with the Boston Police Department, state and federal law enforcement agencies and all appropriate elements of the criminal justice system. Crime-related reports and statistics are routinely exchanged.
The command and supervisory staff of the division is encouraged to participate actively in professional associations that foster increased proficiency in their areas of responsibility. Members of the staff maintain active membership as well as leadership positions in the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, Northeast Colleges and Universities Security Associations, Massachusetts Association of College and University Public Safety Directors, Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, Greater Boston Campus Police Criminal Information Exchange, Massachusetts Crime Prevention Officers Association and New England Campus Fire Safety Officers Association.
Crime Prevention Programs
The Northeastern University Public Safety Division believes it is more beneficial to prevent crimes than to react to them after the fact. A primary vehicle for accomplishing this goal is the division's comprehensive crime prevention program. This program is based upon the concepts of eliminating or minimizing criminal opportunities, whenever possible, and encouraging students and employees to be responsible for their own security and the security of others.
The following is a listing of just some of the crime prevention programs and projects employed by Northeastern University:
• Personal Safety Escort Program — Provides a personal safety escort for persons walking on campus or traveling from the campus to their off-campus residence, if within one mile of the campus, during hours of darkness when personal safety is a concern.
• New Student Orientation — A crime prevention program accompanied by brochures and other printed material is presented as a formal part of orientation at the start of each academic year.
• Residence Hall Security — Crime prevention workshops, accompanied by brochures and other printed material, are conducted in residence halls in conjunction with the Department of Residential Life.
• Emergency Telephones — Located throughout the campus.
• Crime Prevention Presentations— Offered by specially trained officers, programs are tailored to the interests of the student, staff or faculty groups.
• New Employee Orientation — Crime prevention presentations, accompanied by brochures and other printed material, are made to new employees throughout the year.
• Rape Awareness, Education and Prevention — The Public Safety Division is a charter member of Northeastern's Sexual Assault and Acquaintance Rape Coalition, and is a regular participant in programs on campus dealing with rape and sexual assault awareness, education and prevention.
Parking Lot Security — Elevated security booths and well-marked safety patrol vehicles enhance the visibility of security officers in the university's parking areas, and lighting is well-maintained.
Security Alarm Systems — A sophisticated computer-enhanced alarm system monitors a campus-wide network of intrusion, fire and duress alarms.
Architectural Design — Crime prevention specialists of the Public Safety Division work closely with design engineers regarding physical security systems and fire safety equipment when new construction or major renovations are planned on campus.
Security Surveys — Comprehensive physical and operational security surveys are frequently conducted by the division's crime prevention officers to assist members of the university community improve the security of their workplaces and personal belongings.
Facilities Surveys — A comprehensive program designed to identify and correct deficiencies in exterior lighting, locking hardware and safety of the grounds is conducted by the division's officers on an ongoing basis.
Operation Identification — Operation Identification, the national program of engraving serial numbers or owner-recognized numbers on computers, bicycles and other valuable items, is coordinated by the division's crime prevention officers. Engravers are made available to members of the university community free of charge.
Crime Prevention Announcements — Crime prevention articles and information are regularly provided to Northeastern's student newspaper, the Northeastern News, and faculty-staff newspaper, the Northeastern Voice.
Printed Crime Prevention Materials — Brochures, posters and bookmarks carrying crime prevention and awareness information related to residence hall safety and security, sexual assault, bicycle security, the escort service, employee security, motor vehicle security and library security are widely distributed at crime prevention presentations and at various locations throughout campus.
Sexual Assault Awareness Programs and Policies
The Public Safety Division works closely with the offices of the student affairs, residential life, Lane Health Center, the counseling and student development center and a variety of other groups and departments to promote awareness about rape and sexual assault.
More than 90 percent of the sexual assaults reported to the university police are committed by acquaintances. Victims of sexual assault are urged to report the incident to the university police as soon as possible, regardless of where the offense took place, whether or not the victim knows the offender. University policy dictates that university officials who are informed of a sexual assault in their official capacity as university employees urge the victim to make a report to the university police or other off-campus law enforcement authorities. University police work closely with the victim to ensure that the appropriate medical care and counseling is made available, and will assist the victim in notifying the appropriate off-campus law enforcement authorities, if applicable.
Victims of sexual assaults are not required to file formal criminal charges, even if they report the incident to the university police. A university police investigator, specially trained in dealing with victims of sexual assault, will present the victim with a full range of options and services so the victim can choose the most appropriate course of action.
Among the options available to a student victim of sexual assault are such things as on- or off-campus counseling and mental health services, immediate relocation to a different residence facility if the victim resides in university housing, and changes in the victim's academic class schedule if the victim wishes and such a change is reasonably available.
Students accused of sexual assault are subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Student Conduct as contained in the official Student Handbook, whether or not formal criminal charges are filed by the victim. Both the accuser and the accused are entitled to the same opportunities to have others present during university disciplinary proceedings, and both are informed of the outcome. A student found to have committed a sexual assault in violation of the Code of Student Conduct is subject to disciplinary action up to and including suspension or expulsion from the university.
Crime Reporting
Numerous efforts are made to advise members of the campus community on a timely basis about campus crime and crime-related problems. These efforts include the following:
Annual Reports — The Safety and Security Information Report is published annually and widely distributed throughout the university community, and is available to the media and any individual or organization requesting a copy. Northeastern also participates in the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, providing monthly reports of crimes reported on campus for inclusion in the annual publication of the U.S. Justice Department, "Crime in the United States."
University Newspaper — The Northeastern Voice regularly publishes special articles related to safety and security.
Student Newspaper — The Northeastern News publishes a weekly report of criminal incidents. Special articles concerning security issues also appear frequently.
Public Log — A chronological record of all crimes reported to university police, as well as the names of all persons arrested, is maintained at Public Safety Division headquarters and is available for viewing during regular office hours.
Special Alerts — Special printed crime alerts are prepared and distributed on a case-by-case basis.
Fire Safety
The Division's Fire Safety Unit administers an aggressive program of regular inspection, testing and maintenance of university premises to ensure compliance with applicable fire and life safety codes and standards, conducting regular egress drills and providing a variety of educational and training programs in fire safety and prevention techniques for students, faculty and staff.
Emergency Medical Services
The Public Safety Division operates a fully equipped Class I ambulance 24 hours a day. The service is provided by university police officers and security officers who are trained and certified emergency medical technicians. Sick or injured patients are transported either to the university's on-campus Lane Health Center or to a nearby hospital. Many officers are certified cardiopulmonary resuscitation instructors who regularly present classes in CPR to student and employee groups.
Drug and Alcohol Policies
NU Drug and Alcohol Policy Quick Reference Link:
http://www.publicsafety.neu.edu/drugpol.html
On university premises or at university-sponsored activities, the following acts are prohibited:
• Distribution, possession or use of any illegal drug or controlled substance without legal authorization;
• Providing alcoholic beverages to individuals under 21, or possession of alcoholic beverages by individuals under 21;
• Possession of an open container of an alcoholic beverage in a public place without the express permission of the owner, public intoxication, driving while intoxicated and drinking alcoholic beverages in an unlicensed public place.
In addition to imposition of disciplinary sanctions under university procedures, including suspension or separation from the university for such acts, students and employees may face prosecution and imprisonment under federal and Massachusetts laws that make such acts criminal offenses.
Northeastern University works to provide a drug-free workplace for all university employees and students. The counseling and student development center provides resources for treatment and referral for students and employees with substance-abuse problems. Educational programs for students, employees and managers are presented through human resources management, residential life and the counseling and student development center, and cover the dangers of alcohol and drug abuse, the availability of assistance for counseling and rehabilitation, and penalties for violating university policies.