CSU police chief explains how campus security is keeping the university safe

COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) — Columbus State University Police Chief Debra Kennedy has been tasked with protecting students and staff during a time where safety is a national concern.

Chief Kennedy spoke with WRBL News 3’s Cameron Sanders on Friday about how she’s helping keep the university safe, just three months into her new role.

“The university police department’s highest priority is keeping the campus safe,” Kennedy said. “Our faculty, our staff, and our students, that’s our number one priority.”

With a total of 44 school shootings in the U.S. this year, 22 of them have been on college campuses. Chief Kennedy said that CSU is implementing new strategies to keep Columbus State safe.

“In a situation that we determine later to be a hoax, immediately we will dispatch law enforcement,” said Chief Kennedy. “But at the same time law enforcement is dispatched, there’s several things going on behind the scenes to validate that call.”

While some calls are real, hoax calls can happen. However, Columbus State PD is taking every sign of a threat seriously.

“In law enforcement, we’re always training and always preparing,” Kennedy said. “And one of the recent changes that we made is making sure that we’re including dispatch in that process, because they’re the first people that receive calls for service, typically in any law enforcement agency.”

Students at CSU also have access to apps like The Rave Guardian that alert them to safety concerns on campus. Although emergency call boxes can give them a direct line to campus police.

Chief Kennedy said that CSU has several call boxes on campus, and that they’re available for students and faculty to utilize in an emergency, if they don’t have the app.

Being prepared for potential threats on campus starts in the classroom. The police sponsor safety briefings for both students and faculty members. Chief Kennedy said that the road to a safer CSU starts with a community that embraces communication.