Cpl. Andrew Cline and Fillmore, who comprise TU’s K-9 unit, both contribute to overall campus safety.
Towson University’s 2011 Part 1 Uniform Crime Statistics are the lowest—6.38 per 1,000 students—among the University System of Maryland’s 10 campuses, and only a fraction of Baltimore County’s 34.94 rate.
Part 1 crimes include violent crimes like aggravated assault, homicide, forcible rape and robbery, as well as property crimes like burglary, theft and arson.
Specific categories have declined significantly at Towson. For example, the campus reported 116 thefts in 2012, as opposed to 366 in 1995. Burglaries also dropped from a high of 89 in 1997 to just nine in 2012, while property crimes plummeted from 442 in 1995 to 127 in 2012.
The university’s success in UCR statistics continues even as the populations of the campus and the city of Towson grow.
“This is what we’re about,” says Bernard J. Gerst, associate vice president of Public Safety and Chief of Police.
“By ‘we’ I don’t mean just our 60+ member police force, but also our Emergency Preparedness employees and those who are in charge of locks and cameras. Environmental Health and Safety contributes to the safety effort too.
“It’s not that we want to win a competition each year with the other USM campuses,” Gerst continues, “but we are trying to be as safe as we possibly can on all of our 328 acres within the metropolitan area.
“That is done not just by having sworn officers and police aides patrolling campus, but by educating students through our community outreach office and maintaining a visible presence in various ways. We will strive to have the lowest per capita Part I Crime of every school in USM again next year because we value each and every one of TU’s approximately 25,000 full- and part-time students, faculty and staff.”
TUPD officers and support staff distribute a newsletter, contribute information for The Towerlight’s police blotter, maintain a website, and distribute email and text alerts as needed. To learn more about safety and security on campus, and to see additional statistics, visit the TUPD website.
