Public Safety
Working Around the Clock to Maintain a Safe Campus
The F&M Department of Public Safety is under the direction of Chief William McHale and includes 20 sworn police officers, four security officers and four dispatchers. The team works 24 hours a day to maintain a safe atmosphere for students, faculty, staff, and visitors.
We also believe campus safety is a shared responsibility. Understanding the importance of cooperation, education, and a police-citizen partnership makes our campus — and our local community — a safe and pleasant place to live and learn.
An Accredited Law-Enforcement Agency
In 2011, F&M’s Department of Public Safety received its accreditation award and became the fourth state-accredited institution of higher education law enforcement agency within Pennsylvania.
Accreditation is a progressive and time-proven way of helping law enforcement institutions
in Pennsylvania evaluate and improve their overall performance. New operating policies
and procedures are created to ensure ongoing compliance with established state-wide
accreditation standards. With 134 professional standards and 184 sub-standards by
which we are judged, we meet the highest standards of professionalism.
Annual Security and Fire Safety Reports
One of our highest priorities is providing a safe environment for the entire campus community. The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act requires us and all institutional officials with significant responsibility for campus and student affairs to publicly disclose campus crime statistics. By October 1 each year, this publication is developed and is intended to make you aware of the safety and security policies that have been instituted at Franklin & Marshall College to provide a safe academic environment.
Public Safety Compliance
F&M is in compliance with the Pennsylvania College and University Security Act of
1988. See our annual safety reports, information about Megan’s Law and more.
Learn more
Crime Prevention and Safeguarding Services
We strive to prevent crimes from occurring rather than react to them after the fact. Through our crime prevention program, we work to eliminate or minimize criminal activities, maintain a safe and secure environment, and focus our programs, practices and interactions on the needs of our diverse community, continually working to be responsive to their needs.
Emergency Alerts
Franklin & Marshall's Emergency Alert is an instant, mass notification system that enables students, parents, and members of the faculty and professional staff to receive updates and alerts on cell phones, email accounts, Twitter and Facebook.
LiveSafe App
LiveSafe is a personal safety mobile app that F&M is providing to all students, faculty and staff. The app provides a quick and convenient way to communicate directly with Public Safety.
Emergency Preparation Guidelines
F&M has a comprehensive Emergency Response & Crisis Management Plan that will be activated in case of a crisis situation.
Learn more about emergency communication, building evacuations, campus emergencies, and more.
Bias Response Protocol (BRP)
We’re committed to an inclusive living and learning community. The safety, health and well-being of all our students, faculty and professional staff are taken very seriously. For that reason, we established a Bias Response Protocol (BRP).
A ‘bias incident’ refers to behavior, whether criminal or otherwise, that is motivated by the violator’s bias toward the victim’s actual or perceived age, race, disability, gender identity or expression, marital or familial status, national or ethnic origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status. Under PLEAC Standards, we complete a ‘Bias-Based Policing Prevention Form’ for each person stopped, detained, arrested or cited by our officers.
Additional Public Safety Services
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- Patrols within the campus community 24 hours a day, 365 days per year utilizing cars, bikes, and officers on foot.
- Safety presentations offered to students, faculty and professional staff including training for students to promote safety and responsibility wherever alcohol is served or consumed, and S.A.F.E., a program on campus taught by Public Safety officers that is designed to provide educational awareness, and to introduce the aspects of self-defense to students and staff.
- Public Safety officers available to be present exclusively at an event including lectures, sporting events, and more.
- A Public Safety officer assigned to each College House, building communication, rapport and trust, and offering one consistent point of contact with Public Safety.
- The COPs program, which gives students the opportunity to work with Public Safety and become an integral part of solving problems.
- A walking escort service to and from on- and off-campus buildings.
Contacting Public Safety
In an Emergency
If you’re concerned about the immediate safety of someone on campus, please dial 911. Otherwise, you can reach us by:
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- Phone: 717-358-3939
- Email: psdispatch@fandm.edu
- Fax: 717-358-4579
Anonymous Crime Reporting
If you have personal knowledge or have heard of any crime that has occurred on or off campus involving F&M community members, please fill out this form . Please note, a quick immediate response will not occur through this tip submission. If your tip is an emergency or requires timely attention, please use the LiveSafe App where you can also choose to remain anonymous.
Ask the Chief
If you have questions regarding policy clarification, concerns about a Public Safety matter, or any comments or suggestions for making F&M an even safer environment, you can fill out this form to ask Chief William McHale.
F&M is committed to fostering a safe and welcoming campus community; in turn, it is
the responsibility of each person within the Diplomat community to join in creating
an environment in which others can thrive without fear, hate, or bias. All community
members, including students, faculty, and staff, may use this online form to make
the College aware of these incidents. Bias Reporting Form
Please note, this form should not be used to report allegations of sexual misconduct.
Those reports should be made using the Sexual Misconduct Reporting Form.
Citizen Complaint Process
Public Safety is committed to providing quality police and security services to the entire campus community and its visitors. We take that duty seriously, and for that reason we have adopted internal safeguards to discourage abuses of authority by our employees. Complaints regarding such abuses are vigorously investigated to ensure the integrity of the department while protecting the rights and interests of both citizens and department employees.
If you feel that an employee of this department has acted in an abusive, disrespectful, discourteous or unprofessional manner toward you or others, you are encouraged to report that employee to a Department supervisor.
Complaints may be submitted in the following ways:
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- In person: Hand deliver to Public Safety at 609 Old Main Drive.
- Mail: Send to the Chief, Director of Public Safety, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA 17604-3003.
- Fax: Fax complaint form to FMDPS c/o Chief, Director at 717-358-4579.
- Electronic submission: Use the Citizen Complaint Form for electronic submission.
The faculty and staff at F&M care deeply about your safety and believe that it is
our obligation to do our best to keep you and our campus safe. This form is for reporting
instances of sexual assault, sexual harassment, dating/domestic violence, stalking
or other forms of sexual misconduct to the Title IX Office. This form notifies the Title IX Office and serves as a report of alleged behaviors.
It is not a formal complaint to initiate a Title IX investigation.Sexual Misconduct Reporting Form
If you are not a mandated reporter, you may submit this form anonymously if you wish.
AED Locations on Campus
We have more than 50 AEDs located across campus. If you find yourself in the middle of an emergency, you can use this map to locate where an AED is available near you.
See a list of AED locations on campus