The Department of Public Safety/Campus Police
The Department of Public Safety and University Police are committed to providing the highest quality of service to the university community and the public. We are constantly striving to meet the needs and rights of students, faculty, staff and our guest. Staff is on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The law enforcement staff of the Department of Public Safety is Maryland Police and Correctional Training Commission certified police officers. Each office is trained to manage and respond to the needs of the community in a professional and efficient manner. Students are urged to report situations that could threaten the health and/or safety of members of our community; this includes suspicious persons, thefts, assaults, car accidents and unsafe conditions. University Police may be contacted anytime 24 hours a day; you can walk in for assistance or dial the office at 410-651-3300 for non-emergencies. For emergencies, you can contact our office by dialing 410-651-6590. We also provide campus escort service, as well as managing security personnel in our residence life units. For more information, visit Department of Public Safety website.
Reporting Crime and Incidents
Reporting crimes and incidents immediately is very important. The University Police Department is an agency that is manned by sworn police officers who have arrest powers. The University complements its sworn police officers with security personnel. Any occurrence that takes place on campus is to be reported immediately, and those that occur off campus should be reported as soon as possible. Any victim or witness of a crime, who desires to report an incident on a voluntary and confidential basis, may do so through the Police Department, the Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, the Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Athletic Director, Coaches, Area Directors, and Resident Assistants, or any other member of the UMES faculty/staff. The individual’s identity will be safeguarded when possible. The University Police Department closely cooperates with the Vice Presidents for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management and Administrative Affairs, Residence Life, Student Government, and the Counseling Center, to disseminate information about safety and security matters to the campus community through newsletters, annual brochures, scheduled meetings, and other forms of mass communications.
Emergency Services
There are emergency “blue light” telephones strategically located throughout the campus, which are connected to the Department of Public Safety for immediate Police response. Elevators also have emergency phones, which are also connected to the Department of Public Safety and can serve as emergency telephones. The Department of Public Safety can be reached for emergency assistance by dialing 410-651-3300 or for campus police 410-651-6590, twenty-four (24) hours a day.\
Escort Services
Escort services are provided to students during the evening hours by the Department of Public Safety. Students desiring escort services should contact the Department of Public Safety at 410-651-6590.
Emergency Notification
In the event of a campus emergency several methods will be used to make the appropriate notification depending on the type and extent of the emergency. Our policy is that quantity verses quality takes priority, in other words, we will use as many methods as possible to communicate the existence of an emergency, and as quickly as possible. Events which might require use of notification systems are severe weather, HAZMAT spills, fire, flooding, major road closures, criminal activities requiring precautions, etc. Several or all of the listed methods might be used for notification and those methods include: Emergency Siren/Public Address Notification System, text messaging for those students, faculty and staff registered for receiving text messaging, campus wide e-mail notification, campus cable TV, campus electronic message monitors, WESM Radio, and local media channels. For every notification event we ask that you communicate with as many fellow students, co-workers and visitors that an emergency exists and follow any guidance or precautions provided.
Hawk Alerts
Students may sign up for Hawk Alerts to enable their mobile device to receive free emergency broadcast text alerts from UMES Public Safety. The easiest way to sign up for Hawk Alerts is to use the text enrollment feature. The student should text “Hawkalert” to the number 226787 and the student will be automatically enrolled. When a student does this, he/she will receive an acknowledgement that he/she is in the Hawk Alert system.
