Campus safety actions [for family members of DePaul students]

​​​​​​​ We appreciate the messages many of you sent the university over the weekend in response to the safety incidents that continue to occur on our campus. Please know that we are working to respond to each individual message and will get back to you as soon as possible. As a first step, we shared the information below with your student today and wanted to reach out directly to you as well.

In the last three weeks, our university community has witnessed an alarming increase in safety incidents on our Lincoln Park and Loop campuses. We want you to know how much we share your concern and will not tolerate these crimes that continue to occur on campus. We are actively pressing the mayor and elected officials for responses to help us in this effort so that we can get immediate support.

In response to these recent crimes, and based on the feedback faculty, staff, and students provided at the Safety Summit - as well as messages from family members like you, DePaul will implement the following changes:

• Faculty, staff, and students will be required to have their DePaul ID on them at all times on both the Lincoln Park and Loop campuses. In the interest of making sure only our university community members are inside our buildings, a public safety officer may request to see their ID at any time.
  
• Public safety officers will have the authority to remove anyone from a DePaul building who cannot demonstrate they are a faculty, staff, student, invited guest or welcomed visitor. In alignment with this university policy, all public safety officers will be required to complete sensitivity training on a regular basis to mitigate the likelihood of racial or ethnic profiling.
  
• In order to access university floors above the lobby level in the DePaul Center on the Loop Campus, faculty, staff, and students will need to present a DePaul ID or register as an authorized visitor.
  
• Anyone who would like access to the Richardson Library on the Lincoln Park Campus will need to show either a DePaul ID or a government-issued ID.
  
• We will continue to communicate with students about these changes and do ask that they begin to carry their DePaul ID with them now.
  

Security officers and police presence

• We are getting additional DePaul security officers to have a more visible presence on campus, especially after dark and over weekends. We also are increasing the number of security vehicles to patrol the Lincoln Park Campus during the overnight hours.
  
• The Chicago Police Department has approved an increase in its patrols around the Lincoln Park Campus.

• We are working with rideshare companies Lyft and Uber and are actively creating options to develop a subsidized rideshare program for DePaul students.
• We will increase the capacity of the existing Public Safety escort service on the Lincoln Park Campus by securing a supplemental van and professional driver to assist with late-evening rides around campus.
  

These changes are necessary, and we are asking for our university community's understanding and cooperation as we work together on their implementation. We will communicate with our students actively about these changes and welcome input as we review additional improvements. If you have questions or suggestions related to campus safety, please contact us at safety@depaul.edu.

Again, please know we are actively engaging with the mayor's office and our aldermen to impress upon them how much these recent crimes are affecting the wellbeing of our students, their families, and our overall university.

Our students chose DePaul so that they could have access to an outstanding education that will empower them to change the world. We will continue to do everything in our power to keep our students safe and help them succeed academically, professionally, and personally.

We welcome the opportunity to explore campus safety and other topics with you in person at Alumni & Family Weekend​ on Oct. 13 - 15. We hope to see you there.