University of Memphis is consistently ranked as one of the safest campuses in the state by Amy Gregory
Reputation. It’s not just something that affected your social life in high school or a restaurant score on Yelp. The reputation of a place reverberates throughout every social circle and media outlet. Reputation creates perception and most people perceive the University of Memphis to be a dangerous campus because of the crime from the surrounding city. However, University of Memphis has one of the safest campuses in the state. According to 2011 statistics of criminal incidents at Tennessee universities, University of Memphis had the lowest incident rate per thousand amongst the metropolitan schools and the second lowest incident rate among the ten largest schools in the state. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation compiles this information from all reported incidents at schools that have more than 5,000 students and a campus police department. The Director of Police, Bruce Harber, along with more than 30 commissioned police officers make efforts to keep campus and surrounding areas safe on a daily basis. They take on the task of serving and protecting 23,000 students on campus and the public. Over the past 12 years, Harber has coordinated with Memphis Police through a mutual assistance agreement to improve the crime prevention and safety initiatives on campus. “It’s not enough for us to have a safe campus,” said Harber, “Half of the job is making students and the public feel safe while they are here.” There are now over 500 web-based, digital cameras on the inside and outside of buildings that can monitor entrances, parking lots, and campus streets. There are also cameras on top of the code blue emergency phones that are placed all around campus. So, if you can’t talk to the dispatcher or 911 when you have an emergency, they can access the camera on the (Safe Campus continued on pg.3) box to assess your situation and send help.