Safety & Security Information Report

University of Southern Maine

Safety and Security Information Report

Introduction

U.S.M. is a community of over 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students and 2,000 employees. Two of the campuses are located 12 miles apart, in the town of Gorham and the city of Portland. A third campus, Lewiston/Auburn College is located in the city of Lewiston, approximately 38 miles away. The University shares many of the same interests and problems of its local communities, including crime. Although the University has been fortunate and has not experienced significant numbers of violent crimes, crimes do and can occur on our campuses.

The information provided in this report is part of USM's commitment to campus safety, crime prevention and awareness. It is the compliance document for the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998 (formerly the Crime Awareness and Security Act of 1990). Please read this information, learn how to prevent crimes, report crimes, and practice safe behavior.

Even though USM Police is the department responsible for campus safety, no one department can accomplish this task alone. Each student, faculty and staff member is encouraged to participate as we work together to keep USM safer!

The Office of Community Standards compiles this report. Information for this report is collected from the Office of Community Standards, the USM Police Department, and appropriate local police agencies. An e-mail announcing the updated version of this report is sent annually to all currently enrolled students and all faculty and staff of the University.

Reporting of Criminal Actions or Emergencies

Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to report criminal actions or other emergencies by notifying the USM Police Department or the Lewiston Police Department immediately.

Gorham and Portland Campuses: To report a crime or emergency, members of these campus communities including Portland Hall should call the USM Police Department at: Emergency number on campus is 911or from off campus or cell phones 780-5211.  The non-emergency number 780-5211. When calling from on-campus telephones, you are only required to dial 911 for emergencies or 5211 for non-emergencies These numbers are staffed 24 hours a day by full-time and certified communications officers.

Lewiston/Auburn College: To report an emergency members of this campus should call Lewiston Police Department at: Emergency number 911. To report a crime USM Police should be called at 780-5211. 

Well-marked exterior telephones are located at the entrances to all residence halls on the Gorham campus. These direct-ring telephones may be used to report a criminal incident, a fire, any other type of emergency or to request an escort from the USM Police Department. Outdoor emergency direct-ring telephones are also located on the Gorham and Portland campuses. These telephones are easily identified by the blue lights on top and their use provides fast, efficient campus police response to emergencies.

Free on-campus public telephones are located in the lobbies or public areas of most Gorham and Portland campus buildings. Using these telephones, the USM Police Department may be contacted by dialing 911 for emergencies or 5211 for non-emergencies.

The USM Police Department maintains contact with all area police departments, fire departments and other emergency services. Although campus police initiate the response, additional assistance and support may be obtained immediately from area police and fire departments.

The USM Police Department's telephone numbers (911 for emergencies and 780-5211 or non-emergencies) are highlighted in the campus directory and are included in many University publications.

Sexual Assault

Campus sexual assault education programs are aimed at the awareness and understanding and prevention of sexual assault including rape, acquaintance rape and other sex offenses. If a sex offense occurs, students are encouraged to report it to campus police. The USM Police Department is available to conduct educational programs designed to raise awareness of sexual assault issues. The department is also responsible for investigating reports of sexual assault.

Victims of sexual assault are made aware of the importance of preserving evidence, which may be necessary to prove sexual assault.

Victims are informed of their options to notify proper law enforcement authorities, including on-campus and local police as well as their option to be assisted by campus authorities.

Victims are notified of the existing counseling, mental health, and student health services available to victims of sexual assault both on and off campus. Assistance and options are also made available to victims who request a change in academic and living arrangements after an alleged incident of sexual assault, if such changes are reasonably available.

As provided for in the University of Maine System Conduct Code, both the accuser and the accused are entitled to the same opportunities to have others present during a campus disciplinary proceeding. Both the accuser and the accused shall be informed of the outcome of any campus disciplinary proceeding brought alleging a sexual assault. The usual sanctions imposed for sex offenses are suspension from the University for no less than one year up to and including dismissal from the University of Maine system.

For additional information on the sexual assault policy and procedures, call Mary Kay “Maya” Kasper, Sexual Assault/Relationship Violence Advocate,780-5139.  For information on the Student Conduct Code and the procedures for campus disciplinary action, call the Office of Community Standards, 780-5242.

Access to Campus Facilities

Exterior doors on campus buildings are locked and secured after normal operating hours. Police officers and Public Safety Assistants routinely check campus buildings.

Exterior doors to residence halls are locked 24 hours a day.

Maintenance and Security of Campus Facilities

All reports, which present a safety/ security hazard, are given high priority and receive immediate attention. A campus safety survey is conducted each year by the Occupational Safety and Health Coordinator.

Law Enforcement Authority and Interagency Relationships

Police Officers of the USM Police Department have full law enforcement authority including arrest powers on all property owned or controlled by the University, including streets running through the University's campuses.

Police Officers of the USM Police Department are trained in the same manner as all other public law enforcement officers in the State of Maine. They each receive annual firearms training and periodic additional training as required.

The USM Police Department maintains close working relationships with the Gorham, Lewiston, and Portland Police Departments, state and federal law enforcement agencies of the criminal justice system. Regular meetings are held, both on a formal and informal basis. Crime related reports and statistics are routinely exchanged.

A number of recognized student organizations maintain either meeting and/or living facilities off campus. Through an interagency agreement between the Gorham Police Departments and the University of Southern Maine Police Department, any reports related to crime activity associated with these student organization off-campus facilities are shared or reported to the USM Police Department. These reports are subsequently shared with the appropriate University administration and departments.

Security Awareness and Crime Prevention Programs

1. Eliminating or minimizing criminal opportunities whenever possible

2. Encouraging students and employees to be responsible for their own security and the security of others

3. Ongoing coordination and review of security and victim response service

4. Violence response education activities to reduce risky behaviors and change community attitudinal norms

5. Victim response education and training to increase effective and timely community response to victims.

The following is a list of the crime awareness and prevention programs offered by the University of Southern Maine.

1. Training: Programs on how to assist sexual assault victims as a first responder that cover education, resources, and first response skills are offered to faculty, staff, resident hall staff, student leaders, and the general student body. Specific programs are periodically provided to staff in each Student and University Life department. Training is also offered to identified student groups including the Women’s Resources volunteer staff. Additionally, dating violence/ domestic violence education is available upon request. Staff from Student and University Life departments attend conferences and participate in committees on campus sexual assault and campus crime prevention. The University of Southern Maine also serves as a source of training and information for other higher education institutions, and agencies offering sexual assault prevention and response services.

2. Escort Service: The USM Police Department provides an escort service during the hours of darkness for people walking on-campus. Members of the campus community may make use of this service by calling campus police at 780-5211.

3. Residence Halls: At the beginning of the academic semester residence hall floor meetings address security awareness and crime prevention.

4. Printed Material, Distributed: The materials listed below are distributed to each resident student and made available to commuter students. Throughout the year this information is available in Student and University Life departments.
a. Campus safety tips are included in the student handbook the Navigator, are included at the end of this report, are mailed to every member of the USM Community annually, and are posted on the back of each residence hall room door.
b. The USM disciplinary system uses the University of Maine System "Student Conduct Code" which is reprinted in the Navigator. It is also available on the internet at http://www.usm.maine.edu/ocs.

5. Printed Material, Available on Campus:
a. A brochure on sexual harassment provided by the Division of Human Resources.
b. Educational brochures on sexual assault education University Health and Counseling Services.
c. Educational materials on dating/domestic violence.
d. Substance abuse education materials that integrate sexual assault education and crime prevention education.

6. Residence Hall Safety: Programs are offered throughout the academic year for students living in University housing. Examples of safety awareness and crime prevention program to include the following: safety awareness floor meetings, sexual assault prevention workshops, fire safety workshops, safety discussions, debates on safety topics such as "24-hour lockdowns," hall council safety discussions, alcohol awareness, sexual assault dating/domestic violence, violence prevention, sexual harassment programs, and sexual assault and domestic violence programming offered by the Women's Resource Center and other campus and local resources.

7. Campus Wide Crime Prevention Presentations: Under these periodic programs include: safety discussion groups, crime prevention panels, sexual assault awareness workshops, radio and television interview programs on the topic of sexual assault and crime prevention.

8. Emergency Telephones: Outdoor emergency telephones are located on both campuses and are easily identified by blue lights on top. These telephones are linked directly to USM Police in order to provide fast and efficient response to emergencies.

9. New Employee Orientation: At the time of hire and periodically thereafter, University employees are provided information concerning USM campus security procedures, practices, and crime prevention awareness. Notice of the availability of the Campus Safety Report on the web is distributed to all employees, as are University materials regarding alcohol and drugs, safety and hazard programs and University policy statements issued by the University of Maine System Board of Trustees, which are specific to sexual harassment, sexual assault and non-discrimination.

10. Operation Identification: The USM Police Department offers a program which encourages students and employees to engrave serial or ID numbers on items of value such as bicycles, motor bikes, etc. For more information, call campus police at 780-5211.

11. Sexual Assault Response, Education, and Prevention: The Division of Student and University Life in cooperation with a number of University departments provides the campus community with sexual assault response education and prevention programs, a variety of educational materials, and educational workshops designed for students, faculty, and staff. Prevention education is targeted to special populations: high violence risk groups (such as athletes and fraternities), and vulnerable populations: sororities, female athletes, international students, etc., and involves students in the development of educational strategies. Videotapes, campus television and radio, literature tables in high traffic areas, table tents, posters and awareness weeks are all educational strategies utilized.   The University’s policies on sexual assault may be found at http://www.usm.maine.edu/ocs/assaultpolicy.html.  The policy on Relationship Violence and Stalking is found at http://www.usm.maine.edu/ocs/rvspolicy.html.  For printed copies of these policies, please call the Office of Community Standards (207) 780-5242 and provide us with your name and mailing address.

12. Campus Safety Alerts (Timely Notice) On Campus Crime: These are provided to protect the safety of the campus community and to prevent similar incidents. USM provides these “alerts” for crimes considered to be a threat to members of the campus communities. Campus Safety Alerts are initiated by the Campus Safety Alert Group in conjunction with the USM Police Department and the USM Office of Media Relations. Please address questions to Craig Hutchinson, vice President for Student and University at 780-4035 or craigh@usm.maine.edu.

13. Uniform Crime Report: The USM Police Department is one of a small number of institutions who have for a number of years voluntarily submitted data to the State and National Uniform Crime Reporting System. The University of Southern Maine and the USM Police Department have been firmly committed to honest and timely reporting of all campus crime statistics and will continue to report in compliance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998 (formerly the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990).

Crime Statistics
An informed campus community is a safety conscious community, therefore, the following statistics are provided to complement USM's safety awareness and education effort and to comply with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998 (formerly the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990). U.S.M. acknowledges that all crimes are underreported, particularly in the area of sexual assault. We urge all members of the campus community to report crimes and to be active, safety-conscious members of our community. The statistics in this report include crimes reported at the Portland, Gorham, and Lewiston/Auburn campuses and from local police departments for crimes occurring on public property contiguous to our campuses. If you have any questions about this information, contact the Office of Community Standards at 780-5242.

GORHAM CAMPUS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MAINE